Cute for my Cloud
by Lila RoseMoon
Summary: Every girl wants to be 'Cute' for the guy she likes, even the tomboy Maeko Izumi. Maeko comes from a long line of mafia family that has kept Namimori quite peaceful since Vongola Primo arrived. Dressed as a boy, Maeko is attacked at the same time Squalo snatches the rings from Basil. She secretly crushing on Hibari. How will the two fair? M for later chapters for the Future Arc.
1. Chapter 1

**Welcome to the first chapter of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**, a KHR Hibari X OC pairing. I'm Lila, your writer, and I hope you enjoy this story. If anyone wants to know when this first chapter starts, it's the day of when Squalo first appears to take the Rings from Basil. It happens around the same time that incident goes on. I'll try to keep these short and sweet so we can get straight to the story. I'll keep my disclaimers scarce unless they are **_**absolutely needed**_**. **

**Anyways, enjoy the first chapter of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**. **

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of the KHR characters, plotlines, or story. However, I own whatever OCs I make and I owe their souls. ^.^

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**Chapter 1**

Hibari Kyoya sat at his desk in the disciplinary committee room, holding up the files he had and thought about what just transpired earlier. Lying in the room with him was a fellow student of Namimori middle school, Minoru Izumi. He let his grey eyes slide over to the sleeping figure on the couch, knowing well enough that Izumi needed the rest to recover better.

Just a while ago, Hibari happen to chance meeting Izumi outside on the streets.

Seeing the dark haired student swinging a sword, a whip holstered on their hip, while fighting off several attackers made Hibari proud. Particularly since he knew those men attacking were constant offenders to him. Not only did Izumi keep the attackers down and out, but somehow manage to do it while injured significantly. Injured enough that most, aside from Hibari, would try to not fight to agitate their wounds but he could see that Izumi had that stern fighting spirit like him.

Hates losing no matter how injured.

Even when Hibari came to assist, Izumi swung their blade and hit Hibari upside the head with the sheath of the sword. Hibari should have bit him, but he forgave the teen for the hit because it was probably assumed he was another assailant.

Although, Hibari thought as he turned his head towards the sword that was leaning against a nearby wall, he was pretty certain Izumi had been always carrying that sword with him. It look eerily long enough to be hidden in a shinai holder that he has seen being carried around.

Has Izumi hidden a weapon in plain sight the whole time under Hibari's nose?

His mouth twitched at the thought, wondering what else was hidden right under his nose when it came to this kid. He sighed a little, looking back at the sleeping figure and gave into the thought.

How could he not see that Minoru Izumi was a girl?

That was the biggest question since Hibari never noticed any feminine traits until now. Here he's seen this girl so many times on his patrols, her mostly over defeated foes and calling people. Most of the time he let her off the hook, and spared biting her to death. But the reason behind his laying off Izumi was because others in the area said she was keeping the peace. Of all the times he's encounter Izumi, nothing pointed to being a girl. Not even the black hair framing the round face, curling outwards at the very ends and the slight frowning face sent up a red flag for Hibari.

Then again, he only found out by Testsuya Kausakabe calling in a female nurse. He was furious, belittling Testsuya until he got a bit of a shock when jerking the remains of Izumi's shirt open found a pair of breasts just jutting right at him. He had to swiftly advert his eyes but not before taking notice of what looked like a chest binding that got horribly sliced down the middle during the scuffle she was in. That when he agreed with Kausakabe with calling in a female nurse.

The nurse had gone in left a long time ago along with Kausakabe who was sent out to find out what was going on. Now she was being hunted, and Hibari had no idea why.

Sounds came from couch, notifying him she was stirring, and Hibari stood up to go to the couch. She rolled onto her side, her hair falling into her face and her eyes started to flutter open. Hibari moved to sit on the arm of the couch, knowing well enough that she'd more than likely strike at him and will not realize who he was until she was fully awake.

"Where," she said groggily, sitting up and looking around sheepishly. She blinked a few times, wincing from the wounds on her abdomen and glanced down. "Who could have?" She turned her head again and her eyes landed on Hibari. Her light brown eyes widen and she bolted up, grabbing her side as if she was trying to draw her weapon. When she didn't grasp what she wanted, she turned her head to look in horror her weapon was no longer at her side.

Nether the sword or the whip were within reaching range, and disciplinary president made positive they weren't to avoid a scuffle. As much as he would enjoy seeing how she combated, he couldn't risk her becoming injured further. He was pretty certain that whip would be a pain to combat with.

"Your sword is on the wall," Hibari stated. "I removed it in case you rolled over on it and harmed yourself even more. The whip is in my desk for the same reason." He smiled more proud of himself. "And to avoid you deciding to bite me when I want answers, injured or not you are in my domain."

She turned her head sharply, glaring at him and her fist clenched. The normal blocky retro green glasses she wore over her brown eyes weren't there anymore. Proving they were for show more than needed. Hibari had to keep a smug look off his face. For the first time in a long time, he finally found some sort of dirt on the flawless and squeaky-clean record Minoru Izumi had. Not only was she, a girl, wearing a boy uniform and wearing chest binding under her shirt, but also concealed a weapon on school grounds.

How many rules was that? Enough to merit being bitten to death; however, that would be on hold since she was terribly injured and he wanted answers. Whatever was going on, she knew about it.

"You touched my weapons?"

"Yes." He pointed directly over to where the sword was. "It's safe right there."

Her eyes shifted to both of his hands, checking them to see if there were any signs of recent injuries. And then her gaze turn downwards, just now realizing that her chest guard was gone and her actual B-cup was showing. She shrieked, grabbing a nearby pillow and covering herself as a furious blush on her face.

"D-did you treat me?"

Hibari turned his attention back to her. "I was going to, but then I notice how inappropriate it was so I called someone to treat your wounds. I had a woman do it, no worries."

She gave him a glare from behind the pillow, shifting her legs a little so it kept the pillow in place. "Better have or I'd slice you with my sword for looking…" She probably shouldn't have been so hostile, but she didn't know much about Hibari aside from what she had heard from her sources.

Hibari smirked at her words. "Just like a cat, puffing your fur up to look more intimidating. So, what would your name be aside from Minoru?"

"I do not use such lies," she said firmly. "I, Maeko Izumi, head of the Izumi family will never use deception in battle." Her gaze was filled with confidence, and Hibari had to admire her for her words. He knew if he even attempted to get closer, she'll try to punch him. She did it a few times to someone else who got too close to her personal space when they spooked her. Nothing says 'Hi fellow classmate!' like a swift back elbow followed by a shoulder throw onto the floor. He'd seen Judo and Karate club members fall to this multiple times when asking about her friend Aiko Kaneshiro.

_Maeko Izumi…_

He was starting to like her a little more. She was more honor base than he expected, and even mentioning she wouldn't use deception in battle meant she was honest to her core when fighting. Unlike a certain someone he lost too... His thoughts were cut off when Hibrid flew over to Maeko's head, landing on her head and nestles itself right in her hair. Hibari had to not laugh at her confused stare. His cute bird decided to take a shine to her as well.

Well, that was amusing.

Clearing his throat, he looked over at her. "Do you have any family you can stay with? I'm concern those pursuers will still be after you even in your state." He knew her grandmother had recently passed, about two months ago if he recalled correctly. He didn't feel comfortable leaving a girl alone while she's in danger.

Most of the time he would have considered her an herbivore, however, she has proven many times she had sharp fangs and was as much of a carnivore as he was. Well, like a carnivore disguised as an herbivore. Decpetive to a point, but he was pretty certain she had her reasons. He'll press another day.

For now, he had a duty to insure she was safe while recovering.

"Not anymore…" She turned her head, looking away from Hibari and sighs softly. "Whatever is left of the shamble of my family, I cannot return without someone plotting to take my head. Not since that group showed up." She glanced at him and gave a sheepish look. "The only person I could trust to stay with is Reborn-sensei. He looks like a baby, but he knew my s_oba (obachan) _as well as the family head she visited in Italy."

Hibari arched a brow at her words. She knew the baby that was with that herbivore Tsuna? Talk about a small world. "I know where he's currently at, and I'll take you there." He moved closer to her, extending a hand to assist her up. "I'll keep the attackers at bay if they dare come after you. I have a feeling you and I will get along very well."

Maeko looked over at Hibari, uncertain of his offer and glanced over at her sword. She took a moment before grasping his hand and put the pillow down. "I'll trust you… You weren't harmed touching Minoru, my sword, so I guess that's a good sign." She raised her hand up as she knew what he was thinking. "Don't ask. Long, boring story will just result from it. My weapons, please?" She kept the pillowed hugged to her chest until Hibari turned around.

While Hibari walked over to the wall where her sword was, Maeko quickly slipped on the blazer that rested on her shoulders and fasten it up to her chin. He came back, making a quick detour to his desk to retrieve her whip and handed them both back to her. She snapped the whip holder back onto her belt, securing it and putting Minoru in the cylinder carrying case she always used during school.

Hibari stared at the weapons, noticing a theme of lotus emblems on the tassels. The whip had one on the handle. The dangling tassel on the sword had also had what looked like a lotus flower on the end. It was so simplistic, the black sheathe and the small etching detail in the sheath along with what looked like residue of glue where the hilt of the sword met the sheath.

"Shall we go? If you dawdle too long, I will bite you despite you being injured."

Maeko nodded, holding the case she had Minoru close to her chest and followed Hibari to the Sawada residence without following behind.

She really didn't need him biting her or attacking her right now…

|||###||| Sawada's Residence |||###|||

Iemitsu Sawada was the only one at the house at the time that Hibari swung by with Maeko, and he showed her to a room where Fuuta stayed in. He recognized her in an instant, and he wasn't going to press her about why she was so badly injured. He wasn't going to tell Tsuna a classmate was staying for a moment, but he had to protect the final true heir of the Izumi line for Noriko Izumi, Maeko's grandmother.

"Ietmitsu," Reborn said seeing the informer sitting there with a bottle of sake and he smiled.

"Hey friend." He gave a goofy grin and nodded towards where Fuuta, Lambo, and I-pin slept. "Maeko-chan is resting in the kid's room. She won't be able to go to school tomorrow. I told her to rest up and not to worry about it."

Reborn frowned at hearing this. "Maeko is here?"

Iemitsu nodded before his gaze became stern. "Seems like Noriko's worries were spot on. Not only was her death unnatural, but now the Izumi family has now fallen apart at the seams. She suspected foul play when her second-in-command died by a suspicious heart attack and his grandson went missing." He sighed softly and rubbed his temples. "Poor Maeko-chan had to be a family head so sudden after the death."

Reborn tilted his head down, his hat veiling his face. "I suspect Varia being here has more a reason to the dismantle that happened to the Izumi family. A few members in the Izumi family served as underlings in Varia." Reborn turned his head to where Maeko was sleeping. "They must be after Minoru and hope to remove the only outside protection Tsuna may have."

Iemitsu nodded. "Possibly, they may have set it up that they would go all out today to kill her since we would be too busy with keeping the rings away from Squallo. Maeko's ability with Minoru could even surpasses even her grandmother's. She's an imminent threat if she's still alive." He smirked. "Which is why it's a blessing that Kyoya boy found her and brought her here. Saves us from worrying if we still have the true head of the Izumi family's backing Tsuna."

"Mn… Maeko will without a doubt uphold the vow her ancestor did with Vongola Primo."

Tsuna's father nodded. "I've already distributed all the rings. Now," he said before a laid back smiled grace his features. "Is to convince Maeko-chan to wear a skirt! Hopefully she doesn't take a few swings at me with Minoru or with her fist, but she really need to show that feminine charm."

Reborn smirked at what Iemitsu said. "I'm heading to bed. Keep an eye on Maeko in case someone decides to strike in the middle of the night."

"Mn, goodnight."

Reborn headed upstairs to his room to sleep, knowing full well that tomorrow Tsuna was going to flip about the rings being distributed to people he knew

The Vongola Ring Battles were close to starting soon.

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**Thank you for reading this chapter! I'm sorry for the awkwardness of this first chapter. The next few chapters will be much better. . I promise! I wasn't positive which Japanese word I should use for grandmother, so I put both… It's not going to be a prominent thing, just every so often I want to incorporate Japanese in. I'm currently looking at the manga so the next chapter will be much smoother… I hope. -;; Anyways… Rate and Review please. ^^ Until next chapter, ciao-ciao.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Welcome to the second chapter of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**, a KHR Hibari X OC pairing. I'm Lila, your writer, and I hope you enjoy this story. This is the second chapter, and I'll be doing a few time jumps. Simple day-to-day jumps, nothing overly complicated. So please enjoy this next installment. *curtsy* ^-^**

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**Chapter 2**

Maeko woke up groggily to shouting outside. Something about giving someone named Lambo sake? She rubbed her temples, rolling over to meet the curious light brown eyes in a sleepy haze. She blinked a few times before bolting up, grabbing her sword and placing her hand onto the hilt before looking to see who it was. It was a young boy with blonde hair.

"Oh good," the child said cheerfully. "I'll go tell mama that you're awake and ready for breakfast. Tsuna-nii is heading out for school soon."

Maeko let his words sink in a little and she dropped her hand from the hilt. She had recognized the child from pictures her subordinates, from what loyal subordinates she had left, who had taken frequent pictures to keep her up-to-date on who resided in the Sawada home. "You're Fuuta de la Stella, aren't you?" She had heard about one of the few children the Sawada family had taken in.

This child should be the one who could do a mystic like ability.

"Yep," Fuuta said happily. "And you're Maeko Izumi, head of the Izumi family. The mafia family that is also known for their insignia, the Lotus of Truth!" He seemed happy to know something that most trivial nowadays.

Even despite all the yelling that was going on, she could clearly make out her classmate Tsunayoshi Sawada's voice yelling at someone. Maeko nodded, settling back down and sighs. "The Lotus of Truth, even that's gotten around, huh?" She smiled a little, finding it amusing and shakes her head. "Can you tell your mama that I'll try to be down in a bit? I'm a little hungry."

"Okay! I'll be right back!" Fuuta ran out the bedroom, leaving Maeko to her own devices.

She sighed, leaning against a nearby wall and touched her bandages. She was fortunate to find sanctuary in the Sawada household. Without a doubt, she knew the traitors in her own family wouldn't dare attack this place without alerting Vongola of a threat on her life. Izumi has had ten generations worth of cooperation with the Vongola family. Sheltering, information, and various other things they needed. She looked around to see her bag nearby, grabbing it and gets her cellphone out to text Aiko Kaneshiro that it was a code vermillion.

Code Vermillion was the go between for code red and code orange. It was Maeko's way of telling her friends to what degree she was being target and the dangers too. Aiko would understand since she knows very well what Maeko's family was in terms of mafia. So she should be more careful now, meaning Aiko will probably stay away from Maeko until everything has settled down.

The door knocked a few times, and Maeko turned her head to see a familiar face in the mafia world.

"Dino Chiavarone," Maeko said with a small smile. "What brings you here?"

Dino smiled over at the young teen, rather glad to see her awake now. "Glad you're well, Maeko-chan. When I heard from Reborn you were attacked, I feared the worse."

Maeko scoffed. "I'm not that weak, even without Kenji." She turned her head a little, sadden she had still not known of what happened to her second-in-command. He disappeared before his grandfather died, and now her grandmother was dead too.

It was too eerie to be coincidence.

"True, so very true. Nothing is scarier than facing the truth within one's heart. Even you would know your limits." Dino smiled and snaps his fingers. "Ah, just came to ask you a few questions about this Hibari Kyoya. I'm to be his home tutor and Reborn said that you have some information on him."

The dark haired teen arched a brow at Chiavarone's Tenth boss. "Data on Hibari Kyoya, Displinary Committee President of Namimori Middle?" Even without her glasses on she looked like she was expecting something in return.

A sweat drop formed behind the blonde as he realized he's going to have to probably pay for the information. He knew Maeko didn't dish out information without equal value. It was a trade she learned from her grandmother, who was known to hold information back if she wanted information in return. "Yes, I'd like something to go on. And I think I know why you were attacked." He looked at her seriously. "Varia has showed up, we think them showing up here had something to deal with it."

"Varia…" Maeko glanced over at her sword and sighed softly. She grabs her pencil bag and pulls out a small flash card. She hands it over to Romario, who accepted it willingly, and she looked directly at Dino. "That chip has whatever information I've known about him up to the time Kokuyo Junior High Gang incident. Use it as you see fit, but remember the promise."

Dino smiled at her. "Don't disturb the balance. No worries Maeko-chan."

Maeko gave stern stare down to Dino. "You best not. The Izumi family has kept most of mafia in the area under wraps with our laws." She crossed her legs and winced a little at the pain. She probably shouldn't be trying to get into her fearsome boss pose that she always did when she finished beating the living hell out of stupid underlings from various mafia families in the Namimori area. "I hope I can regain my position as head before the other families get out of control…"

"I'm sure you will once the Vongola ring battles are over." Dino walked over and pat Maeko's head. "Just hang in there and trust Tsuna and his guardians to settle this."

"Hands-off," Maeko said, almost growling her words.

Dino jerked his hand back and gave a nervous laugh. He forgot she was a bit touchy when it came to certain people patting her head. It was something her grandparents did a lot, and not many people could get away with it. "Sorry. I'll see you around Maeko." He turned around, pausing and looking over at her. "If Varia shows up, I ask you to _not_ confront them about these allegations in your current state. I'm certain Xanxus would attack you no matter how badly injured you are."

Maeko sighed softly. "Unless he wants a ripple effect in his group of those who are loyal to both sides, he probably wouldn't." She looked at Dino and nodded. "But I won't be visiting him anytime soon if he does come to Japan, I'd have to return to my home to see if my grandmother had anything hidden that she wanted to give him."

"Give Xanxus what?" Dino sounded surprised.

"Your gift was shipped not too long ago before her death if I recalled correctly." Maeko slowly moved out of the bed. "More than likely my grandmother had something she wanted to give to the ninth boss of Vongola and his son. She was like that, even if Xanxus loathed her for each gift she gave him. He always accepts her thoughtful gifts…" She had vague memories of as a child the one time she came with her grandmother many years to visit the Vongola main branch.

However, she never physically met Xanxus. Not once.

"Ah… Well, see you around Maeko-chan." He smiled once more before leaving out of the bedroom with Romario.

She sighed softly and shook her head. Leaving her weapons in the room, feeling certain they would be safe, Maeko slowly made her way downstairs to get something to eat. She could already hear Iemitsu calling his wife for food as she headed out of the bedroom.

|||###||| With Tsuna |||###|||

After having what the rings described to teens, Gokudera and Yamamoto dashed off to find a tutor to train them before the ten day limit when Varia would probably arrive. Ryohei showed up too before running after his tutor, the Arcobaleno, Colonnello.

"Ah.. Are you tutoring Gokudera and Yamamoto," Tsuna asked Dino in his panic.

"No… It looks like this kid is more problematic. Even Izumi describes him as such."

Tsuna blinked at hearing a familiar name. "Izumi?"

"Ah," Reborn said nonchalantly. "Minoru Izumi gave you information on him."

Tsuna looked at the two in puzzlement. The only person he knew that name belonging to was the short haired, glassing wearing kid who sat in the back and staring outside the window whenever Tsuna happened to look in that direction.

"Yea, thankfully it was just basic behavioral information. I always did rely on the Izumi family when it came to information on things here in Japan." Dino rubbed the back of his head before Tsuna screamed in realization of what they were hinting at.

"Izumi is mafia!?"

Reborn looked at him. "We'll discuss that later. Besides," he turned to look away, "I'm certain Gokudera and Yamamoto would find their own perfect home tutors."

Tsuna blinked at this bit of information. "Perfect home tutor…?" This was enough to make him lose his train of thought of the quite kid in his class was part of mafia too.

|||###||| Some time later, in the reception room of Namimori Middle |||###|||

Hibari was toying around with his half of the Vongola ring, reading from a notebook while sitting on the sofa in the reception room. He glanced up sensing someone coming into the room.

"You're Hibari Kyoya, right?"

"…and you are?" Hibari clutched the ring half in his closed fist.

Dino stood there with Romario beside him. "I'm like Tsuna's big brother, and also an acquaintance of both Reborn and Maeko." He only mentioned Maeko's name because Reborn already informed him that there was a possible chance Hibari knew she was female. "I want to talk about the ring with the cloud symbol on it."

Hibari smirked a little. "Oh, the baby's… then you must be strong." He stood up from his seat, placing the journal he was reading on the couch after closing it. "Talking about the ring is not my main concern. As long as I can bite you dead…"

"I see, a problemtic kid indeed." Dino got his whip out. "That's fine. This way things will go faster."

Hibari got out his tonfa, preparing for battle. He wasn't too bothered with this man saying Maeko's name without honorifics. He was prepared to bite her one day too. For now, he wanted to fight this guy who was an acquaintance of that baby.

Anyone who was an acquaintance of Reborn was more than likely strong.

And so the training begins…

|||###||| Several days later |||###||

Maeko walked out of the bathroom in the hallway, startled to hear someone screaming so loudly in the morning. "Ha?" She shrugged at the fact Tsuna was yelling and bemoaning about something. She could clearly hear him talking about a terrifying foe. The only person she could figure that was intimidating for a particularly softy like Tsuna would be Xanxus of Varia. As much as she felt like comforting him, she had to leave early.

Today was the day she was returning to school.

Leaving before Tsuna, she made her way to school and was busy texting Romario of the status of Hibari's training. She was use to the roads to school, an ear bud in her right ear as she was walking to class. She had some minor injuries still on the mends, but she figured she'd be fine.

"Morning Minoru-kun!"

Maeko turned her head and waved at Aiko. "Morning, surprised you're here."

Her childhood friend giggled at these words, bouncing beside Maeko as they walked together to school. Maeko always thought of Aiko as the panicle of cute. Fluffy mid-back light brown hair, large doe-like eyes, and a small figure that suited the school uniform well.

"Nothing's gonna stop me seeing you." She held her arms up, her fist balled up as she gave a determined look. "My Minoru-kun needs me!" She looks over and smiles at Maeko. "You were gone for a while, and I notice the binding is gone. Should I call you the usual nickname now?"

Maeko gave a disgruntle sigh. It was the truth. Since her chest binding was destroyed in the combat from a few days ago, she couldn't hide the fact she had breasts anymore. "That's fine with me. Although, it might cause people's head to spin because I've been called Minoru for so long."

Aiko laughed. "About time I can call you Mae-chan!" She twirled once before she continued walking beside her friend with a skip in her step. "I can finally ask Mae-chan my burning questions about boys, crushes, and not have to worry about getting strange looks!" She smiled over at Maeko. "And you can finally show that cute side."

"I'm not cute."

Aiko gave a little grin. "Totally cuuuuuuttteeee when you blush about me mentioning a certain disciplinary president who's got that bad habit of biting people."

Maeko face turned red. "Sh-shush you!" She turned her head away, _hmph_ing her friend's even if it was more obvious with Aiko's teasing. There was no denying it. Maeko had a crush on Hibari ever since she let her gaze follow wherever he went.

It just started as a habit to avoid having confrontation. Then she was managing to spot Hibari while class was still going on or see him on the street patrolling. She could easily see where he was, spot him instantly and go about her way. Although, her childhood friend teasing her about how she sighs a lot whenever she misses spotting the carnivore for a while made her embarrassed.

She didn't want to mention that she had Hibari's blazer around Aiko. The chances of more teasing to ensue were bound to happen. "Anyways…" Maeko wanted a change of topics. "How is archery club with you?" The two friends were pretty much almost as school, and she knew something was up.

Someone was carefully following them.

"Oh," Aiko said, thinking about the club so far. "It's been good so far. I'm enjoying what I can learn from my all my senpai in the club." She smiled and waved goodbye to Maeko. "I'm heading there for early practice before trotting off to class. See you when the first bell rings."

"See you when the first bell rings." Maeko waved back, and started to head towards the roof where Romario text that Hibari and Dino were at.

It didn't take her that long, jogging up the steps while holding onto the blazer to her chest. She was allowed through, opening the door to see the roof having huge amounts of holes and the two combaters heavily injured.

"Welcome," Romario said, smiling at her while bowing to her.

"Maeko-chan." Dino was panting heavily, sparing her a glance before returning his attention to Hibari. "Looking cute toda-" He dodged a swift lunging attack Hibari did, using his whip counterattack.

"Leave or I'll bite you."

Maeko sighed at the typical response from Hibari. "I wanted to know where I should put your blazer, Hibari-kun." Just as Hibari turned his head to look at her, she tilted her head to the side and smiled at him. "Or would you rather I slather it in chocolate and leave it in the Reception room on a sofa to get it all messy."

Dino laughed a little at her words and smiled.

"You…" Hibari gripped his tonfas and was preparing to attack her.

She smiled at him. "I tease, Hibari-kun." She giggled at him actually thinking of striking her. In his condition, she would probably just irritate him with using a whip and kicking him. Like he needed more irritation… "I wouldn't do that to your blazer. After all you did save me from being killed." She held up his blazer and showed it was perfectly clean. "Want me to leave it with Romario or with your vice-president?"

"Kusakabe."

She nodded and smiled. "Alright, good luck defeating Dino!" She turned around, having her back to the carnivore. "He was trained by Reborn-sensei. I'm sure it'll take you a while to actually defeat him." And she knew with this training, he may have a good chance against Varia's Cloud Guardian.

"I'll bite you next once I'm done with him."

She giggled at him saying that. "Sounds like a date." Maeko walked through the door from the rooftop, leaving Hibari and Dino to their battle.

"Sounds like a bad date if you ask me," jokes Dino. He got ready for another wave of attacks and almost flinched at the hostility in Hibari's gaze.

Looks like the Bucking Bronco struck a nerve with carnivore…

|||###||| A few hours later |||###|||

Maeko was standing with Tsuna's guardians, waiting for Tsuna to arrive. She was still wearing boyish like clothes, and she was staying relatively quiet. Despite the constant glares she was getting from Gokudera, she knew he was just paranoid about her being with Varia. She was waiting for Tsuna, Reborn, and Lambo so she could do a proper introduction.

"Sorry I'm late," Tsuna said as he ran over to the group. "Lambo started to play hide and seek on the way here."

"Dumb Cow, causing trouble for the tenth!" Gokudera looked at Lambo, who was picking his nose, pissed at the young child.

"He's just a kid…" Maeko looked at Gokudera like he was scolding Lambo a bit much.

Gokudera gave a wary look over at her, standing up straight and was going to say something nasty before Yamamoto interrupted. "But then, there are those who aren't even here yet."

"Like always, the mist guy hasn't showed up." Ryohei was glancing over at Maeko, and she shrugged at him.

"Anyways," Gokudera said, shooting a glare over to Maeko. "Why is Izumi here? Are they not here yet?"

"They're already standing by," said a Cervello, her voice coming from above. The teens looked up to see the Cervellos and Varia standing up above them on a part of Namimori's building. "Upon a strict conference, the battle-cards for the scramble battle have been decided for tonight. The first match is the battle between the guardians of the sun."

"The match between the guardians of the sun… that means…" Tsuna looked over at Ryohei.

"It's that boy." Lussuria looked down at Ryohei.

"It's him," Ryohei said to himself.

Varia and the Cervellos dropped down to the ground. And then they go explain the special cage match between the two. Tsuna was getting nervous, envious of Lambo who was napping on the ground and was oblivious to what was going on.

Of course, Xanxus was nowhere to be seen. Squalo was talking to himself, and snapping at Levi for glaring.

"Squalo," Maeko said, catching the Varia's Rain guardian. "He knows better than to disrupt the balance here with senseless bloodshed. Xanxus wouldn't dare upset the balance and have the Izumi family getting after him."

"Eh?" Tsuna looked over at Maeko, noticing something a little off with the body as she glared over at Squalo. He was highly impressed she wasn't afraid of anyone in Varia.

"Ah, if it isn't Maeko Izumi." Mammon looked over at her directly. "Surprised to see the head of the Izumi family here. Shall I charge you a fee for observing this fight?"

Gokudera's jaw dropped at hearing this bit of information. "Wait, this kid is?"

"A girl?" Bel snickered. "Duh~ Maeko is the female head of the Izumi family, following her grandma's footsteps. Her father, the previous head, died when she was young. She's an ally to Vongola. Anyone who knows the allied families know to behave while in Japan, or the Izumi family will dish out divine punishment if their established rules are broken."

"Mhm~" Lussuria waved at Maeko. "No need to look scary. How's your grandma?"

Maeko closed her eyes and sounded rather calm. "I'll discuss that later with your boss in person. I'm certain she had something for him that he'd like to get."

"Ah, we'll make sure to have our underlings allow you in when you swing by," Squalo said. Everyone in Varia was being oddly respectful to Maeko in a way. Probably due to her position, and more likely because Varia knew who could back them up if they prove themselves. Having the Izumi family backing up a Vongola heir could improve the chances of others accepting the heir to being the tenth boss.

Reborn looked over at Maeko, surprised she pulled off a poker face and avoided answering that question. The teens seemed to have recovered from their shock, although it was mostly Tsuna and Gokudera who were utterly shocked. Yamamoto and Ryohei seemed perfectly fine hearing she was a girl.

Makes you wonder if they knew…

"I'm going to play now~" Lussuria walked over to the ring.

"I'll go! Leave it to me!" Ryohei started to head over there before Yamamoto inquired about a group circle. "That sounds passionate! I've always wanted to do that at least once!"

"Eh," exclaimed Tsuna

"You moron! Why would you do such a lame thing!" Gokudera had a shocked look.

Unforturnately for the two, they go roped into the circle.

"Ryohei! Fight!

"OH!" Yamamoto was the only one enthused about this circle. Tsuna just gave a weak 'O' to contribute while Gokudera fell quiet. Ryohei looked over at Maeko and gave her a thumb up.

"Good luck, Senpai," she said, smiling softly at him. He nodded at her before entering the ring. She was just going to be watching the match, bending down and picking up Lambo. "I'll keep hold of Lambo while the match is going on." She was looking directly at Tsuna while saying this.

"Oh… Thanks Maeko-san." Tsuna was uncertain of what to call her anymore.

"You can call me Maeko." She smiled a little at Tsuna. "Vongola and Izumi family have a long standing alliance since Vongola Primo and even the second boss." She turned her attention towards Levi. He was glaring at her something fierce.

"Ah, alright." Tsuna scratched his head, turning his head right over towards where Ryohei was at.

Once Tsuna wasn't paying attention, that's when Maeko glared right back at Levi. Not just any glare, one of repercussions because she was well aware of what he did before the matches began. A glare that managed to make the Varia thunder guardian flinch a little.

Bel snickered. "Looks like Levi's going to get a little punishment for disturbing the balance from the Izumi head."

Levi inwardly grimaced and watched the match with the rest of Varia.

|||###||| After the match. |||###|||

Lussuria stood back up, his metal knee plate shattered from Ryohei's True Maximum Cannon. The true victor was Ryohei after Kyoko came to the ring side with Hana. Colonnello flew ahead and she followed behind him. Maeko had watched the whole matched, highly impressed by Ryohei's will to fight. Particularly, when his sister came in and reignited his desire to win.

"Come on! Let's continue!" Lussuria got back into his fighting stance despite him being severly injured.

Ryohei stared at him in confusion. "What are you in a rush about….?"

"Hurry!"

The teens didn't understand what was going on, but Reborn and Maeko knew what was about to happen. Maeko didn't turn her gaze as she watched Gola Mosca brutally shot Lussuria in the back. This stunned Tsuna and his group.

"Lussuria was scared of that. That was why he was so anxious to continue. 'Erasing the weak.' One of the reasons why Varia is the strongest team of all." Reborn explaination resounded through the group, shocking Tsuna even more.

Maeko waited quietly until the Cervellos figure that Lussuria cannot combat anymore and announced the next match before Cervellos and Varia vanished.

Tomorrow night was the Thunder match.

She waited until everyone was heading back, staying quiet after handing off Lambo back to Tsuna. That was until Gokudera rounded to her and glared. "Whose side are you on?"

Maeko arched a brow at Gokudera and Yamamoto who hung behind. "If I stated, you wouldn't understand. Reborn-sensei understands as does Varia." She knew if she attempted to explain her relationship within Vongola in a whole, Gokudera may not get it.

"You're avoiding the question…"

"Of course I am. It's a bit too early to completely explain my role," Maeko said curtly.

He was going to say something else, but something, a vivid pink umbrella to be exact, smacked Gokudera in the head. "Ouch!" He turned around to glare menacingly at whoever did it.

Standing behind him, hands on her hips was none other than Aiko. "Stop picking on my Mae-chan or I'll poke your eye out with this umbrella!" She puffed her cheeks and swung her umbrella around again. For someone who was shorter than Tsuna and acted so sweet; she was proving that even she had a tough side to herself.

"Ai-chan, why are you here?" Maeko went over to her friend and raised her hand up to keep Gokudera from saying anything. Her eyes darted around to make certain no followed her friend, let along lurking in the shadows to jump the two girls.

"Because I was worried, I came too late to see the match." She gave an apologetic look to Maeko. "And I don't like people who are mean to you," she said, glaring right over at Gokudera.

Yamamoto laughed at what Aiko said. "Maeko-san." He looked at her seriously. "You're an ally to both, but I have a feeling you're rooting for us to get those rings."

Gokudera looked at Yamamoto shocked that he deducted that. How could this baseball nut conclude something so vague?

"Yamamoto-kun knows Mae-chan's heart!" Aiko bounced and giggled.

Maeko sighed and looked at the two guardians. "Get some rest. You'll probably need it for your training tomorrow." She looked over at Aiko. "I'll stay at your place tonight. I'll email Reborn-sensei I'm with you so he doesn't worry."

"Mn!"

Gokudera just stood there shocked as Maeko left with Aiko towards her home. She had her gear with her, and she was in a healthy state where she could defend herself. Yamamoto waved the two girls off before looking at Gokudera. "Maeko-san is kinda like Hibari-san, isn't she?"

This caused the Storm guardian to frown at hearing this. Was that why Yamamoto assumed she was on their side? If she was like Hibari, then maybe he could trust her. However, for now, he'll keep his suspicions to a minimum. He didn't want the tenth picking up his concerns.

However, he had no idea that tomorrow's battle may turn his opinion of her.

* * *

**Thank you for reading the second chapter! Bit by bit I'm sure Maeko and Hibari will get their time together. I'll make sure that before the Future Arc that they'll get the deserved time and a little before the final matches. Most who know the series should know the battles I'm skipping. I don't want to heavily, at the beginning, have a lot of fights. I will have fights later on, no worries. **

**^^ Please Rate and Review, and I'll see you next chapter. Ciao-ciao. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome to the third chapter of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**, a KHR Hibari X OC pairing. In this chapter, I hope to have the two battles of Thunder and Storm in this done. Because if anyone who knows the KHR series, knows what happens at the end of the storm match. ^-^ Anyways, enjoy Chapter 3.**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Maeko stirred from her sleep, glancing out the window of Aiko's house to notice that it was raining heavily. Her phone vibrated, and she glances over to it before picking it up. There was a message from a subordinate of hers, and she sighed softly. She had slept in her clothes from yesterday, so she went to the bathroom for a quick shower and change into her spare clothes she left here. A towel in hand, she dried her hair and headed downstairs to see Aiko's family still there.

"Oh," Aiko's mother said once she spotted Maeko. "Good morning, Mae-chan. Ai-chan went to school for her archery class, and she mentioned you may have to head home for something." She ponder a moment, a wooden spoon poised near her mouth as she thought about what her daughter said before she smiled softly at the young teen.

Aiko's mother, Miyu Kaneshiro, was like an older version of Aiko aside that her mother had darker hair and was currently pregnant. Last time Maeko checked, Aiko's father was the one who had that coffee-color hair. Seiji Kaneshiro, who was elementary age last Maeko checked, was probably walked to school by Aiko.

"Mn… I'll be heading out after eating. I asked Ai-chan to get whatever notes I missed." She smiled over to her friend's mother. She took a seat at one of the tables, thanking her for the meal before eating what was laid out.

Aiko's older brother, Etsuo, was still sitting at the table. He was drinking some coffee while reading the paper. "Family business again, Maeko?" He glanced over at her over the rim of paper.

"Yea," she answered. "I got a message earlier and they need me to double check something." She takes a few bites of rice. She normally discussed her mafia like habits with them as if it was an actual business. From what the message stated she got earlier, however short it was, looks like Joben was planning to visit Xanxus today if Squalo didn't scare him out of it.

It's a blessing the captain of Vaira was able to scare the scheming cousin of hers.

"Ah, guess that means you'll be skipping class again."

"Not like I want to, but duty calls," Maeko said bitterly. It wasn't like she wanted to skip out on classes, but she had a feeling she'll be a bit busy with meeting with Varia if Joben decided to meet with them. Very few people could meet with Varia without sweating bullets from their oppressive killing auras.

Joben has to be up to something if he wanted met with Xanxus in her stead.

"Ah!" Aiko's mother jumped a little, holding the swell of her stomach and giggles. "Looks like the baby kicked again. Ai-chan and Seiji is excited to being a big sister and big brother." She pats her stomach and looked over at the picture of her family that she had nearby in the kitchen.

"I bet they are." Maeko smiled at the thought.

"So am I," Estuo said with a pout. He really liked being the eldest brother, and this caused Maeko to giggle.

"Well, I'll be heading out." She picked up her dishes, walking them over to the sink so Aiko's mother didn't have to walk and pick them up.

"Take care," Aiko's mother said with a smile.

Maeko nodded, grabbing her bag from the sofa along with her case with Minoru. She headed for the front door, grabbing her shoes and putting them on before Aiko's brother walked to the hallway. He leaned against a nearby wall, his arms crossing his chest as he looked at the young teen.

"Hey, Maeko." She looked over at her and arched a brow. "You can stay in my room if you want to. Aiko said that in that huge house you get lonely because no one is around your age." He smiled a little at her, one of the few times he did because he normally teases her.

"Yes, feel free to stay here at any time." Aiko's mother smiled at Maeko. "You're like family here. Don't hesitate to come here if you're ever in trouble. I'm sure your mother and grandmother know we'll take you in no matter what."

Maeko smiled. This is why she always was strict with what she did as head of the Izumi family. People like the Kaneshiro family made her recall why she did her job well. A warm place like this she could come to and always call home. "I will! Thank you for the hospitality. I'm off!"

She pulled the hoodie over her head, and she opens the door to run into the rain. She hurried off towards where Tsuna and Reborn were training. Today she was going to be training herself. Maeko needed to train. She'll trust that Reborn was training Tsuna efficiently to raise his power level.

Now she has to train.

**|||###||| With Tsuna |||###|||**

"What's wrong Tsuna?" Reborn was standing in the raining, training Tsuna who wasn't completely into it. "You're not focusing one bit."

"Lord Sawada…." Basil looked at him in concern.

"The special bullet still has a risk of death. If you don't concentrate, you will die," reminded Reborn.

"Even if you say that, I can't help it!" Tsuna looked over at Reborn and Basil. "Today's match has been bugging me…" He also had this bad nagging feeling in his stomach. Reborn looked at Tsuna and turned around.

"The third level can wait. Let's go back."

"Eh!?" Tsuna looked over at Reborn. "Wait! Reborn! What about Maeko-san?" He turned his head and looked over at Basil. "Basil-kun, do you trust her?"

Basil tilted his head. "Of Lady Maeko?" He smiled a little. "Lady Maeko is the most trustworthy of all the Izumi family. Unlike some who see power and greed, she is just like her grandmother and her father. A pure and honest heart she is."

Tsuna was trying to grasp who Maeko Izumi was from his training partner and his tutor. It wasn't really enough. Even when he recalled what few times he's spoken with her, he never got that serious vibe from her. Then again, she was hiding the fact she was part of mafia (along with the fact she was even a girl) and she more than likely knew he was part of Vongola before he did.

"Reborn-"

"Maeko will not dishonor the blood oath between Vongola Primo and the First Izumi head." Reborn must have seen this question coming a mile away, his hat tilted down to cover his face.

"Blood oath?" Tsuna looked at Reborn with confusion.

"Oh yes," Basil said with a smile. "The blood oath is sacred and has yet to be broken in all ten generations. A very noble promise between the two families."

Tsuna's jaw dropped. "If that's true, then she'll side with Varia!"

"She will _not_ side with Xanxus after what _he did ten years ago to her parents_." The baby hitman stood still in the rain, his small hands balling up at the memory.

Tsuna flinched a little at the baby hitman's reaction. He could sense in Reborn's voice something awful must have happened to Maeko's parents. The rage and the sadness that was showing… What did Xanxus do to Maeko's parents?

"Let's go." Reborn was the one leading the way. Obviously, he didn't want to dwell here anymore and wanted to not think of the memory either.

It was some time later, and Reborn and Tsuna arrived to see that the arena was on the top of the school. While the Cervellos explained the field, Aiko appeared to stand beside Gokudera. "Wow~ Looks like this field is suited for Thunder guardians." She rolled on her feet, her pink rain boots matched her raincoat, and she whistled lowly. "Guess it's a good thing I came in Mae-chan's stead."

Gokudera jumped a little hearing Aiko so close to him. "Why are you here!?"

Lambo turned around and grabbed her raincoat. "Aiko, Aiko-nee! You have Lambo's candy Maeko promised?" He looked up at her with optimism that she did.

Aiko smiled, pulling out of her coat pockets a piece of Lambo's favorite candies. "A treat before you get to your match. Make sure to eat it all before you head out." She glanced over at Tsuan and his guardians. "Maeko explained to me what is going on yesterday so I'm in her stead."

"What is Maeko doing?" Reborn looked at Aiko.

Aiko giggled. "Training. Although, I'm certain she has another reason to not be here." She looked a little serious before glancing down at Lambo who was enjoying the candy she gave him.

"Eh?" Gokudera didn't get it.

"Oh…" Tsuna had a feeling he knew why she was avoiding this match. Considering how young Lambo was, it may trigger a response from her. Particularly when his own mother was praising of how good of a caretaker Maeko was, saying that all the young children in the housed loved having her watch over them. "Alright. Aiko-san?"

"Yes, Tsuna-kun?"

"You knew she was part of mafia?"

Aiko giggled. "Always knew she was part of mafia for a long while. I accept it, and I'd gladly beat on people who think she's not a good head." She puffed her cheeks. "Considering her age and all the things she had to go through, she's doing her best!" Gokudera gave a little of a sweat drop.

"Aiko Kaneshiro." Aiko looked over at the Cervellos. "Maeko Izumi told you the rules of the Ring Matches, correct?"

"Yep!"

The Cervello on the left nodded. "Very well then, you will be her substitute to watch in this match. We were told a Joben Izumi wasn't allowed to substitute." Aiko frowned a little and nodded.

Lightning flashed, revealing Levi was standing in ready for combat.

The battle for the Thunder Guardian Ring has begun…

**|||###||| After the match, in a sparring room in the main Izumi house. |||###|||**

Maeko's forearm slammed against the face of the dummy she was practicing on. Mostly she was doing hand-to-hand combat before she tried having one of her subordinates spar with her. She had worked up a bit of a sweat since she had been at it for hours. She delivered several swift punches to the head, one at the bridge of the nose, and multiple hitting different areas on the chest. In the room with her was her aunt, sitting patiently until she was done with her practice.

Her aunt was the eldest daughter of the Izumi family. However, unlike Maeko's father, she didn't have the ability to wield Minoru and was not bitter about it. She had been convincing others to settle down after her grandmother's passing, and also told Maeko to practice here. Maeko trusted her aunt who happily raised her with her grandmother Norkio.

The door of the room slid open, alerting the young teen someone had come in.

"What are you doing here?"

The sounds of boots hitting the mats in the room were distinct, and Maeko took note of her aunt sounding unhappy about whoever was here. Most people took their shoes off when entering the house…

"Ah~ I just came to see how Maeko-chan is, mother." Footsteps stopped right behind her. "I can see the head of the family is alive and well. Spunky too~ Particularly if she's socking that dummy like she's pummeling those foul rule breakers."

Maeko slammed an open palm onto the chest of the dummy, anger starting to boil at him mentioning rule breaking. "Rule breakers? Like yourself? You, a subordinate and cousin, dare tell Varia that you'll meet them in my stead even though I stated I'll go myself?" She turned around, glaring right at her cousin Joben.

"He did?" Her aunt was surprised to hear this.

Her cousin gave a shrug. "I figured you were still on the mends, dear cousin. That's why I offered." He gave a sly smile. He was sketchy looking even when he was fifteen years older than Maeko who was fourteen, almost fifteen. Wearing shades and still wearing his shoes despite the traditions of leaving his shoes at the door.

He's always disrespectful in that aspect.

"Obviously I was well enough if I personally told the Varia captain, Squalo Surperbi." She narrowed her eyes at him even more.

"Ah? My bad." He smiled at her.

"Joben," his mother scolded. "She is the family head. Before you even suggest such a thing, you should have seen her condition before attempting an offer." She looked at her son. "You know that will raise suspicions of you!"

"What suspicions?"

"Suspicions of trying to overthrow the only live heir who can use Minoru." Maeko's fist balled up and she turned herself to face him, her hand sliding off the dummy as she readjusted her gloves on her hands. "And other things. Bypassing what I said and going straight to Varia is a big no-no. Everyone knows this."

Joben raised his hands up, backing up and gave a surprised look. "I was doing it while thinking of your health! Everyone knows what horrible deeds Xanxus could do to you given what he did to your parents. No one wishes history to repeat."

Maeko gritted her teeth at hearing him mention her parents. Her loving parents' death…

"Joben, I demand you to write a reflection letter immediately! And I want you to write all the rules the members of this family must abide for the head of the family a hundred thousand times."

"M-mother!"

"Don't you dare sass me or weasel out of this punishment." Maeko's aunt spoke in a firm voice. "I will keep order for the sake of my brother, Sakuya, and my mother. Do as I say, now. Maeko will give you her punishment later."

Joben grimace at his mother's words, turning around and storming out of the room.

"Thank you, Aunty Sakura." Maeko sighed at her inability to tell Joben off.

Her aunt shook her head. "It's fine, Mae-chan." Her aunt smiled at her kindly. "I could see you struggling to find words that didn't reflect your anger. I did not appreciate him bringing that up." She sighed and turned her head to the side. "I know he visited someone today."

"He did?"

Her aunt nodded. "I overheard him talking on his phone about an appointment. Who it was, I do not know." She turned her head back to Maeko.

"I see…" Maeko found this disturbing. If Joben went to meet Varia today, tomorrow's meeting will be very interesting. All the possible things Joben could have said ran through her mind before her aunt spoke once more.

"So… when should I expect this Hibari Kyoya to join the Izumi family to keep the peace?"

Maeko's face went flushed at hearing her aunt bring up Hibari. "Aunty! I haven't asked him yet." She glanced away, embarrassed that she got flustered about her bringing this up. "I was going to ask him if he became part of Vongola. Saves the hassle of indicting him into the family, and I'm sure he wouldn't like that process."

"Oh~ So you're placing your bets on the Sawada boy winning?" Her aunt gave a sly look.

"Aunty… you're as bad as Ai-chan…"

Her aunt laughed, a full hearty laugh, her hand close to her mouth as she gave an amused look to her niece. "Of course I am! How often do I get to tease you about boys? Plus a boy who's got potential of a possible husband candidate too." She smiled proudly. "It's not often I get to see Mae-chan act like a proper girl. I have high hopes for him, and I'm certain we can bend the rules a little depending on his interview."

"Interview…?"

Her aunt laughed again. "Of course! I'll be sitting in on the interview, and I might ask him of about the future."

"Aunty…"

Her aunt chuckled again and smiled. "Alright, alright." She stood up and waved at her niece. "Come now. I'll have one of the servants draw a bath for you, and I'll have the head chef make something for you to eat. Bathe and I'll make sure to have your food in your room when you arrive."

"Fine…" Maeko sighed, realizing she really did need a bath and something to eat before she headed to bed. She had a meeting with Xanxus tomorrow. Hopefully, all went well.

**|||###||| The next day, a few hours before the matches |||###|||**

"Maeko-sama." This subordinate, a man in a suit, looked over his shoulder as he drew the car up to where Varia was staying. "We're here." He got out of the car, getting to her car door and opened it up for her.

Maeko turned carefully, handing the subordinate the wooden box as she got out of the car. She was in an indigo color kimono, black lotus flowers were embroidered in the cloth, and she stood carefully. Her grandmother had told her that whenever she met with Vongola, she couldn't wear anything but a kimono. That meant no suits, no chest bindings, and anything else she normally wore at school.

"Do you want me to come up with you?" Her subordinate handed her the box back, and Maeko smiled.

"I'd like that, but please don't fret. Xanxus knows better than to harm me. My vote for him being a proper boss weighs too." She smiled and headed into the building. She had three subordinates with her as she made her way up the stairs to visit Xanxus. Two Varia subordinates led her upstairs to where Xanxus was.

"Looks like you finally arrive."

Maeko turned her head, surprised to see Squalo leaning on a nearby wall before she could get to the door. "Waiting for me?"

He scoffs. "Wanted to inform you that the boss is eating, and we won two rings yesterday."

Maeko frowned at hearing this. "Two rings…?"

"The thunder ring was a given. Levi defeated that brat no problem. However," he said with a grin. "That Sawada kid stepped in and loss his ring."

"I see. Thank you for informing me, Squalo." Maeko closed her eyes and walked passed him, shocking the rain guardian. "You three stay here," Maeko said to her subordinates. "I'll be right back." She saw them nod to her, taking position nearby and she entered the room.

Xanxus was eating steak at the moment, pausing when he opened his eyes and spotted Maeko. "What do you want?" He was almost finished with his meal, and he grabbed a glass of whatever booze he had on hand.

"The meeting," Maeko said. She walked over and placed the wooden box in front of him. "And I came to deliver that long awaited gift." She pried open the box, showing a whiskey bottle inside along with a custom shot glass. Maeko didn't purchase these at all, but rather they were the last things her grandmother wanted to send to Xanxus before she died.

Xanxus stopped drinking what he had in his hand. He grabbed the bottle, examining it and motions Maeko to sit. The one thing he enjoyed was his whiskey, and she brought him a bottle of one he really wanted to taste. "Right…" He looked at her after he picked up the shot glass, noticing something and shot her a stare. "I expected the old hag to be here giving it to me."

Maeko wasn't troubled by his speech, was prepared for him using an insulting word for her grandmother. She took a seat opposite of him. Xanxus knew she was too young for drinking, unlike her grandmother. "Unfortunately that isn't possible." She looked at Xanxus. "She died two months ago due to unnatural causes. Iemitsu Sawada and his group are investigating it for me as best as they can, but you can understand they are busy with other matters that are more important to Vongola."

Xanxus had looked away from the shot glass, setting it down it down slowly. "You're left alone then?"

"My aunt has been trying to keep the family afloat while I was recovering. Someone told me the day I was attacked was coincidentally the same time when Squalo attacked Basil."

"You were attacked?" Xanxus looked directly over at her.

She nodded. "By men who dressed similar to Varia, and they didn't seem like men you'd let in." She kept her hands in her lap, knowing that Xanxus wouldn't be surprised she knew about Varia's activities. "I understand the Vongola Ring Matches are important, but I have a feeling someone wants to make it look like you also planned an attack on me. We both know what would happen if I suspected you doing that…"

"I see." Xanxus took a sip from his drink, setting the glass down, and laced his fingers together. "Do you have any suspects or speculations?"

"Joben Izumi, my cousin." She looked at Xanxnus. "He wanted to meet with you, and he's probably up to no good. It's not the first time he's attempted to remove me from being head of the Izumi family. His father failed to do it when my dad was around, now it's the son's turn."

Xanxus snorted at hearing this. "I see. I know from what Squalo tells me, he's pulled all the strings he could to get a meeting with me before you. Sadly, I'll see him after the ring matches are decided." He narrowed his eyes. "If he had something to deal with Noriko's death, I will deal with him swiftly."

Maeko was surprised by his words. "You don't have to, Xanxus."

"I owe it to your grandmother. Even if she's an annoying old hag, she made me promise to look after you if _anything happened to her._ And that was before the incident ten years ago…"

Maeko tried to not laugh at how angry he sounded. Seems like her grandmother, probably through a card game or something of that sort, managed to rope him into that promise. Then again, he may have been more obligated now after all that's transpired. "Alright… Just do me this one favor. Please don't kill the cloud guardian of Tsuna's." She smiled.

Xanxus paused from drinking from his cup, a brow arching to show his puzzlement.

"I don't know the outcome of the matches, but I was planning on having him be a part of Izumi. Plus, I don't think you need to face my furry for killing the boy I like." She smiled at Xanxus, seeing his mouth twitch at hearing her words. She was just pissing him off even more.

"Whatever, trash."

And the usual Xanxus was back, cuing Maeko it was her time to leave before she completely blew his fuse. Standing up, she bowed to him and turned towards the door. "I'll see you at tonight's match." She walked out of the room and sighed softly.

"Welcome back, Maeko-sama!" Her subordinates straighten up, and Levi was there instead of Squalo.

"Leviathan…" She glances at him and smiled. "If you kill Lambo, Tsuna's thunder guardian, I will dish out divine punishment." She gave him a serious glare, making him grimace. "He is a child, and from what I gather you damaged him badly. If you do anymore… expect trouble."

"Understood…"

Maeko closed her eyes, walking over to her subordinates and had them lead her out. They did, leaving Levi to his thoughts as Maeko returned home to meet up with Aiko.

**|||###||| Later that evening, before the Storm match. |||###|||**

Maeko arrived with Aiko in tow, knowing her friend would give an honest opinion of the match. She even heard the play-by-play of last night's match. To be honest, she was concerned about Lambo's condition. They happened to see Tsuna, Basil, and Reborn meet up with Yamamoto and Ryohei.

"Everyone! Evening," Aiko called, catching their attention.

"Good evening to you all." Maeko bowed, smiling at the group of boys.

"Lady Maeko, you look splendid in that kimono." Basil was the first to notice the kimono that she hadn't changed out of. It was the same kimono from earlier; she just didn't wish to peel herself out of it since she got an interesting text earlier in the day.

Tsuna looked over at her surprised. In the kimono, she looked more like a girl than ever. Even the little hairpin she was wearing was cute.

"I know! She's super cute~!" Aiko bounced around and Maeko sighed a little.

"Ai-chan…"

The two girls had no idea that they just came at the end of the conversation where Reborn proposed that Shamal could have stopped Gokudera from coming to this match.

Reborn frowned a little. "If you're wearing a kimono, that must mean…"

"Mn. I'll inform both you and Dino later, Reborn-sensei. The conversation was, well, eye opening." She smiled a little, heading towards the lighted area of the school.

While walking, Tsuna was having more doubts about what Reborn and Basil said about Maeko. "Maeko-san," Tsuna said as they made their way to the hallway. "What are you to Vongola?"

Maeko paused, turning around and looking at Tsuna directly. "An ally to all of Vongola, and those who are heads, bosses of sorts, of organizations within Vongola. If you are going to ask if I am trustworthy, I will make this clear." She placed a hand over her heart. "_Within the darkness of doubt, I will guide you with Minoru's light. When the time comes, I shall strike truth into your heart so you can defeat thy enemy filled with truth and confidence. And before your days end by the blade of the enemy, I will exchange my life for yours_."

Silence followed afterwards, and that's when Tsuna blinked at such a bold statement. However, he felt something else behind her words. Something he couldn't grasp at the moment.

"Let's go." Reborn knew that if they dawdle too long that the Cervellos will not like that.

They arrive at the hallway where the storm match was to be at, yet Gokudera had yet to arrive. The clock started to count down, and it was obviously getting closer to the time of the match. That was until the clock outside the school exploded.

"Sorry for making you wait, tenth!" Gokudera stepped into the hallway, strapped with bombs on his waist and bandaged slightly. "Gokudera Hayato, present."

"Since you arrived at the designated time you will be permitted to participate in the match," said the Cervellos.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna was relieved to see him after all. Although, he glanced over to where Bel was and wondered if Gokudera could defeat the genius of Varia.

"Shaving it a smidgen close, nee Goku-kun?" Aiko looked at Gokudera.

"Sh-shut up you midget!"

"Midget!" She glared at him. "I should slap you silly! I'm petite! _Petite!_ Y-you lackluster, screwball of a genius!"

"A midget is a midget! I came in time, stupid!"

"Dummy!"

"Pest!"

Maeko had a sweat drop fall from behind her head at the two antics. She closed her eyes as she tried to figure out why they were doing this. Obviously Aiko and Gokudera threw childish remarks as punches… Yeah, she wasn't expecting this conversation at all. She knew Aiko and Gokudera may butt heads a bit, but not to this extent.

"They did that last time too, a little before Lambo had to fight…" Tsuna seemed to pick up Maeko's confusion of what was going on. "And probably a little afterwards too, I asked him to walk Aiko home."

Maeko sighed, walking over to the two and lightly hitting them in the head.

"Ow! Mae-chan!"

"Hey!"

Maeko looked at the two sternly. "Stop arguing like an old married couple, and let the Cervellos explain the battlefield." Aiko blushed while Gokudera grumbled something under his breath.

"Thanks you, Izumi-san." The Cervello on the right. "Tonight's battlefield will be the entire third floor of the school building. Of course, this includes the buildings connected to this one. Not only the corridor, but all the classrooms on this floor are also part of the battlefield. However…"

A swift, strong gust of wind blasted several desks out of one of the classrooms, causing it to slam into the adjacent window and shattering it upon impact. This surprised Gokudera who was thinking the battlefield like this was his favorite with all the cover. That's when the Cervellos explained the hurricane turbines that they had placed in various spots of the battlefield.

That include the part where they exploded if neither side accomplished getting the ring within the fifteen minutes that the bombs were set for. All of it was Xanxus's idea.

"No way… That's cruel…" Aiko was shocked, knowing that there was a possibility of either one dying or both dying.

"Typical of Xanxus. It's a true death match now."

Tsuna looked over at Maeko, surprised to hear her comment about Xanxus so casually. That was before he saw Shamal grope the two Cervellos breasts to see if 'everyone is alright' and got swiftly hit by the judges.

"Ah, swift reflexes mean you ladies are healthy."

"Trident Shamal… He was scouted for Varia two generations ago, and refused. Why is he here?" Mammon was obviously confused on how the infamous Trident Misquito master Shamal was now on the side of Tsuna's team.

"Could it be that baby's doing?" Squalo was considering all the people who became tutors and assisted Tsuna. Dino, Colonnello, and now Shamal. He didn't count Maeko because she wasn't technically assisting Tsuna's team at all. Not one bit aside from being there for moral support.

Ryohei suggests doing the circle rally shout that they started doing the last two times. Of course, Gokudera was completely against it until Tsuna, in his awkward wording, explained to Gokudera why it was important.

Maeko had to smile at Tsuna's words, knowing that they were pretty much true. This battle wasn't just Gokudera's fight alone. As a whole, Tsuna's guardians are also battling and risking their lives for these rings. Sometimes she wondered why the Izumi family didn't adopt this sort of family like structure. Then again, Izumi didn't have a bigger background like Vongola and then there was the selecting of the head of the family.

Doubtfully Minoru's choosing a rightful heir would be a good factoring in.

"Mae-chan," Aiko said, tugging on her kimono sleeve. "This Xanxus doesn't really expect either side to get the ring in under fifteen minutes before those bombs go off… does he?"

She glanced at her childhood friend and sighed softly. She wished she could comfort Aiko's worries, but she had a feeling that lying wasn't a good thing. As she tried to figure something out, Shamal had came over and placed his hand onto Maeko's forehead.

"Eh?"

"Making sure you don't have a fever and pretending to act tough." He grin was a little goofy, if not borderline perverted. "And although that kimono adds a cute charm that you've always missed," he said, pausing as he looked at her chest. "Surprisingly you're not as flat chested as I expected…"

Something snapped in Maeko, her hand reaching into her kimono and pulled out a short dagger and pressed it against Shamal's throat. This surprised most, aside from the Cervellos who probably knew this. What was coating the dagger were orange flames, and Maeko's eyes were narrowed as she glared at Shamal.

"Shut up and watch the match, old man, or I'll be more than happy to tear you asunder." She pressed it harder, keeping sure that her threat was possible. "And don't dare trying your trick. I don't think you want trouble from this flower."

Shamal swallowed, a smirk forming on his face told the whole story. He was testing her. "Obviously those reflexes are still good. Alright, I am sorry Miss Lotus." He backed up before blowing onto the dagger. Even with the flames present, they appear to not burn the person depending on Maeko's will. "Now be nice Mae-chan or you'll never get a boyfriend. Some guys find that tomboy, unapproachable type bothersome."

Aiko gasped at him saying that, but Maeko ignored him. She took a deep breathe, calming down and sheathing her weapon.

"She can use flames too?" Squalo was asking this quietly to Mammon.

"Seems like that's the trait Minoru picks up, but there may be more to it that we're not witnessing." Mammon was very well versed in Minoru, something he doesn't say out loud because of what happened ten years ago.

Ten years ago, he had a taste of Minoru against his own illusions.

After the group did their rallying shout, Lambo's tail substituting for him since he was in the hospital, Gokuder and Bel got in position. The rest of the group was corral into a lower room with infrared

"Aren't your shoulders a bit stiff?" Bel touched Gokudera's shoulder before he went to his side of the hallway.

The battle for the Storm Guardian Ring has begun.

**|||###||| A little after the match, just as Varia gets a message of an intruder. |||###|||**

"Bastard! What are you!" Levi seemed furious about his men getting taken out.

"What kind of fly has buzzed in? It seems worth looking forward to."

"Heeeeeyyy!" Squalo glanced over at the Tsuna's group.

Whoever was knocking out the Varia underling were causing a stir, and Maeko had a sinking suspicion of who it was.

"What's happen?" Tsuna was a little nervous.

Basil gave his input. "It seems there's something coming this way."

"He's back from training," answered Reborn.

"He!?"

A Varia subordinate was kicked swiftly into the hallway, revealing that Hibari Kyoya who was the one striking down the members. And he was irritated nevertheless as he started listing the things that were broken, oh Hibari and his rules…

Of course, a Cervello tried to settle the problem that was bounding to happen. However, Levi wasn't listening to a word she was saying and charged Hibari. "Graceless," Maeko muttered to herself. She saw it coming as Levi charged Hibari, and the Committee President didn't even side stepped the Vaira Thunder Guardian.

He tripped Levi and let him fall flat onto his face.

It didn't seem like he was going to stop either, and Aiko glanced at Maeko who was standing quietly behind Tsuna and Ryohei. It was as if she was expecting her to interject before he got out of hand. Maeko knew her bounds and she glanced at Squalo who was thinking of taking on Hibari.

"Please stop this. If guardians enter into unregulated brawls outside the official scramble battle, they will be disqualified." The Cervello seemed to want the two groups understand that. This was why Maeko knew that if they wanted to fight each other, at least Varia, they would have to obey the rules.

"Calm down Hibari. I know you're angry but—" Yamamoto was trying to defuse the carnivore but Hibari wasn't having it.

"You're in the way. Don't stand," he swung his tonfa, "in front of me."

Yamamoto moved swiftly from the strike, appearing behind Hibari and grabbing his tonfa. "That long-hair is my opponent. Please be patient a little while longer."

This surprised people that Yamamoto was able to do that. Unfortunately, that just pissed Hibari off.

"Ciaossu, Hibari." Reborn appeared in front of the carnivore.

"The baby?" He looked puzzled. "Sorry, but I'm busy at the moment."

"Although it's fine if you let yourself loose here, you might lose a greater chance to enjoy yourself." This caught Hibari's attention. "It's not immidately possible, but if you bear with now and participate in the scramble for the rings … you might be able to fight Mukuro Rokudou again in the near-future."

Hibari thought about it for a moment. "Hm. Really." The Cervellos even promised to repair the school too. "Don't lose to that one over there before my turn comes around." Hibari started to leave before Yamamoto could have a chance to reply to him.

"Stay with Tsuna and his group." Maeko said to Aiko. "I'm going to follow Hibari." She smiled, trotting after Hibari before he could fully leave.

"Mae-chan…" Aiko sighed softly, and turned her attention back to the group.

Maeko managed to catch up to Hibari even with her wearing a kimono. "Hibari-kun!" She stopped when she saw him turn around to see her. She stopped once she got closer to him, panting as she catches her breath. She could hear his footsteps as he came closer.

"Maeko Izumi?"

She stood up and smiled at him. "The one and only!" She looked at him and giggled at his surprised look. "I look more like a girl now, eh? Grandmother always told me I need to wear kimonos when doing family business."

"Business?"

She chuckles. "Just a meeting with someone in Vongola, nothing too serious." She looked at him and tilts her head. "I'm glad you're done with training. Have fun?"

He blinked a little at her words. "It was interesting." He was a little lost in thought considering he wasn't expecting her to wear a kimono.

"That's good. If it's boring, I don't think it would have been productive." She started to walk a little, glancing at him and smiles. "Heading home?"

"I'll walk you home."

Maeko frowned. "I can go home on my own…"

"You're a girl."

"And?"

Hibari leaned closer and touched a little bit of her hair. "How could I not escort a cute girl home?" He moved closer, glad they were pretty far out of the way Tsuna would have gone if he was going home. "What kind of man would I be if I left you behind and someone attacks you on your way home?"

Maeko's blushed at his words, she turned her head and glared at a nearby wall. "I'm not cute."

Hibari leaned closer, backing her into a wall and he nuzzled his nose against her hair. He took a deep breath, glad he got to see her in a kimono. He had heard some rather irritating things from Dino. Things about Maeko that made him anticipate seeing her again. And here she was, wearing an indigo colored kimono and he had a little bit of time before he had to part with her.

"Hi-Hibari-kun?"

"Hm?"

"You're sniffing me…"

He pulled his head back from where his head was, finding her face even redder because his nose moved from her hair to her neck. "Sorry about that." He smiled at her and grasped her right hand. "Best get you home."

Maeko nodded, just quietly following his lead as he took her home. She wasn't going to fuss about him grabbing her hand. She could tell he was being conscious of her wearing a kimono, his strides were shorter and he wasn't going too fast for her.

"Ah, before I forget…" Hibari stopped suddenly, causing Maeko to bump into his back.

She rubbed her nose with her free hand, glancing at him and dropped her hand. "Forget?"

Hibari turned around to her, leaning in close and looked at her. "What is your relationship with the herbivore Tsunayoshi and that annoyance Dino?"

Maeko blinked a little. "Dino is also an ally to the Izumi family. As the head of the family, I meet with a few bosses and family heads who are allies with the Vongola family." She paused a bit as she tried to phrase her relationship with Tsuna properly. "And with Tsuna-kun, we're acquaintances who have family ties. Our ancestors had a pact with one another, one where each generation took the oath between the two seriously even with the other Vongola bosses."

Hibari frowned at her words. "Do you prefer the herbivore?"

"Prefer?"

Hibari sighed. "Like him. Do you like that herbivore Tsuna?"

"Like as in…?"

"Like-like, as in crush."

Maeko blinked a few times and stared at Hibar. He really asked her that? "_Baka._"

"Excuse me…?"

"_B-a-k-a. _" She looked at him directly in his eyes. "I don't blush around him. Isn't it more obvious who I have a crush on?"

Hibari arched a brow at her words. "Blushing counts?" He frowned and tried to think of who else she would blush around and it made no sense. Why would she crush on her friends? He meant her female friends, girls who were talking to her and suddenly she'd blush from something they said.

"Stupid Hibari-kun."

He was going to say something, to tell her off , turning around and she caught him off guard. Their lips met, and she pulled back before he grabbed her other wrist. She just kissed him. She _kissed_ him even if it was a light one.

She actually planned to kiss his cheek, and he _had _to turn his head around that very moment. "Can I go home?" She wanted to be home, bury her head into her pillow before things got worse.

"Maeko-sama?" Saved at the last moment, Hibari was going to say something but one of her subordinates was standing there with a flashlight. "Is this young man causing you trouble?" Hibari released her wrists and glared at the man that interrupted them.

He should bite this person for coming when he was just about to ask Maeko her reason for what she did...

"No, he was just walking me home." She put on a smile, a faint blush still evident and she glanced at Hibari. "See you at school." She started to walk over to where her subordinate was before Hibar grabbed her sleeve.

"Wait…"

Maeko turned her head to look at Hibari. She really did want to just escape from him.

His grey eyes snagged her, showing his confusion and he glanced away. "Does that mean what I think it means?"

Maeko could tell her subordinate was wondering what in the world they were talking about. And she didn't want to have him tell her aunt what he overheard, would be a horror story to wake up and have her aunt tease her about her confessing to Hibari right then and there.

"Well, yea… but it…" She gave a nervous laugh. "I'll explain tomorrow… See you then." She smiles shyly to Hibari, and she could have sworn she saw him blush. She couldn't quite make it out in the dark so she wasn't positive since it wouldn't have been much.

More than likely he didn't… She thinks.

"Fine… See you at school…" He let go of her kimono and let her go home with her subordinate. Hibari turned around, Hibird perching itself on Hibari's head as he headed home. His face was a little red, blushing a little at seeing Maeko's face. The girl could claim she wasn't cute all she wanted, but Hibari knew the truth. Somehow, she became too cute right before his eyes and it made something inside him stir.

Maeko Izumi made the carnivore's heart skip a beat.

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**And now we end chapter 3! e-e I'm so, so sorry if this thing took me forever to do. I just got stuck on a few parts and had to go listen to music and get unstuck. I figure that Dino would coax Hibari into attacking him with things that would irritate him. ;D Anyways, I'm sorry if it seemed like I rushed the relationship at the end but it's not that rushed… I hope. I mean, he **_**just**_** came back. Besides, a failed kiss on the cheek to a first kiss was kinda interesting… **

**Anyways, please R&R and I'll see you in the next chapter. The next two matches are on!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Welcome to the fourth chapter of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**, a KHR Hibari X OC pairing. I'm doing two matches per chapter, and I might actually do a little play-by-play for these two matches to give some action. I'll start out with probably a few chapters in the manga of each fight until I get tired of writing it. I'd **_**greatly appreciate**_** if you, my readers, could be kind enough to review the action. Tad worried it's not up to par… So here's chapter 4, enjoy. ^-^**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Maeko was in the sitting in class, having a small chat with her friends while noticing something was a little off. A few of the boys in class were talking, shooting her odd looks while going back to their conversation. Something inside her, that nagging feeling, was telling her that they were talking about her since they were looking directly in her direction. One guy she knew had 'rivalry' with her, swearing to beat her at everything.

Isamu Fukushima was the guy who swore to beat Minoru Izumi, the guy, in everything including winning girls' hearts. Not likely she'd take that challenge seriously. She wasn't overly flustered if he managed to get more chocolates than she did. He was one of those guys who decide the challenges despite Maeko not giving two damns about his rivalry. She considered it childish and stupid, really.

"Ne, Minoru-kun," Kyoko said, catching Maeko's attention. Most of the girls, at least Maeko's friends, knew to call her Minoru in school until she felt comfortable coming out she was a girl. "Why is that bird on your head?"

Maeko blinked, tilting her head back and finally notice the weight of something on her head. A bird? She lifted her hand up, creating a little platform and the bird waddled onto her hand and she brought it down to see it was Hibird. This could mean only one thing…

"Guess it's a calling card for Hibari-kun?" Maeko glanced at her friends, making sure her voice stayed low and looked at Hibird. She scratched the top of the little bird's head, hearing it chirp and it flew off towards the roof. "Guess I'm going."

"Need me to take some notes of you?" Kyoko smiled at her.

Maeko shook her head. "I should be alright unless sensei has new material." She dug around her bag and handed Kyoko the homework that was for the next class. "Tell sensei Hibari called me, and thank you for this favor." She turned in most of the homework for when she wasn't here for class. She tended to be on top of late homework, knowing most of the teachers were trying to be linnet given what was going on in her family life.

"It's no problem. See you later." Kyoko waved at her as she headed out of the room.

Maeko knew where the roof was at, heading there with her bag and with the shinai she held Minoru with. She hardly left the house without it, and it made it comforting to know that her aunt was home until everything settled. When Maeko was attacked, her aunt was out of town at the moment.

Opening the door to the roof, she noticed Hibird flying in a circle in one spot and she sighed. Typical of Hibari to be on the roof napping, she was surprised this was the first place Hibird would drag her to. She walked over to where Hibird was flying, glancing downwards to see Hibari lying flat on his back with his hands behind his head. He looked extremely content with his napping, and Maeko really didn't want to disturb him. She set her bag and Minoru down before something grabbed her foot.

She jumped, a yelp escaping her as she grabbed Minoru to use as a weapon before a voice stopped her from swinging down.

"If you hit me, I'm going to bite you to death."

Maeko glanced downwards to see Hibari had finally opened his eyes, and she blushed a little. "It's your fault for grabbing my foot and scaring me." She wasn't expecting him to grab her foot, and she was rather glad she wasn't wearing the girl uniform. Hibari would have gotten a view what was under her skirt and she wouldn't have been happy with him. Probably why she avoided wearing skirt, flashing of underwear was frowned upon even in combat.

How many lectures did her grandmother tell her to not wear skirts in battle? Enough to sink in and make her almost never wear skirts to begin with.

"Ah." He let go of her foot, sitting up and ran his hand through his hair. Hibird flew down, landing on Hibari's shoulder and he scratched under the bird's chin. "I just wanted to talk about last night…" He glanced up at her, frowning and gestures her to sit down. Something about her standing while he was sitting was bothering him.

Maeko sighed, sitting down and holding onto Minoru just in case. "What about last night?" She really didn't want to be talking about it on the roof. Heaven forbids someone walked up here and spotted them doing something 'scandalous' and start a rumor. Maeko didn't want his reputation to be tainted that he was with a guy if someone spotted them together.

He moved closer to her, sitting beside her and it made her tense up a little. "Can I believe that what you did last night, before you ran off, was an implication of your true feelings?"

"Aren't you a box of mysteries today…" She knew what he was saying. It was just his phrasing was leaving it vague if someone overheard their conversation. She sighed softly and glanced away. "To answer your question… it's a yes. Although, you moved too quickly and it ended up like that…" She felt awkward trying to explain that she meant to kiss his cheek. They were full of omitting specific words here and there.

Her chin was grasped, her face turned back towards him and Hibari had a little smirk gracing his features. "If that's so, then let's re-do _that_ properly." He started to lean in to give her a kiss, this time it wouldn't be light like the last time. He wanted a real kiss, not some peck that was accidental.

"Wait a minute!" She pulled her head back. "Hold your horses, Hibari-kun." Maeko gave him a glare. "Isn't there something _you_ forgot to say to me before doing that?" She knew that they weren't exactly saying that they liked one another out loud, but he didn't even hint that he liked her. If he wanted a kiss, he'd have to admit he also had feelings for her before she grab his damn tonfas and smack him around.

Or she'll find something else to beat him with.

"I forgot something?"

"Yes… I admitted something, and you haven't."

Hibari frowned. "Must I say such a trivial thing?"

Maeko glared at him. "It's not trivial to me. Come on… If you don't, I'll just smack you and head back to class."

"Kitten…" He moved his hand as if he was going to draw his tonfas.

"How is it fair I admit it and you don't?" She pouted a little at him. "That's how it normally goes. Both confess and then we go from there to build a strong bond."

Hibari grumbled something incoherent, his head moving to lay onto her shoulder and he closed his eyes. For a moment, Maeko wasn't sure why he did it. If she didn't know better, it looked like he was about to head back to napping. She waited a while, Hibird flying off to land on a nearby roof. Hibari's hand moved closer to hers, lacing her fingers with his and he spoke softly; quietly enough that it'd be hard for anyone else, aside from her, to hear.

"I like you, Maeko."

She smiled at hearing him say that. It was really touching, and she adored him for that. That was before she giggled at the next words that came out of his mouth.

"Don't make me say it again, or I'll bite you to death."

"Typical Hibari-kun." She leaned close to his ear and whispered. "I like Hibari the most."

The carnivore moved away from her, standing up suddenly and he looked away from her. He seemed to have a poker face on, but she noticed a faint blush on his cheeks. Guess her directly saying it was super effective.

"Can we do that now?" Hibari glanced at her, sheepishly gazing at her.

"Would you rather I said it in a cuter way?"

"…"

She laughed. "What?"

"It was fine as it was… If any cuter, I don't know what I'd do."

Maeko gave a little grin. "Because if it was cuter, your weakness, you'd probably lose control?"

"Kitten…"

She giggled at teasing him. She found it super fun. At times he's teased her, and now she gets to tease him. "A kitten is cute, guess that's a cute nickname for me. Hm?" She smiled, tilting her head to the side and winked at him.

"A kitten is cute until they grow up."

"Are you saying I won't be cute when I grow up?"

Hibari leaned forward, recovering from his embarrassment and had a look of confidence. "You'll have a different charm other than cuteness. I'm sure I'll like it."

"Wha-" She didn't have time to finish her sentence because Hibari kissed her.

The way he positioned himself, he probably blocked anyone from the staircase seeing what they were doing. He made sure to catch her when she was talking, slipping his tongue into her mouth and making her blush at the French kiss he was giving her. She was going to pull back, but he bit her bottom lip before she could and she glared.

"Hibari…"

"Hm?" He gave a sly smile to her. Satisfied he got a proper kiss this time around on his accord.

Maeko stood up, pulling out one of his tonfas from behind her back. "I'm going to beat you…"

Hibari blinked, looking into his blazer to see one of his tonfas gone. How and when in the world did she do that? "How did you?" He looked over at her in puzzlement. "Kitten, did you steal that?"

"Borrowed." She smiled sweetly at him. "Because if I pummel you with this, you won't have any complaints since it's _your_ weapon instead of mine." She twirled it effortlessly and locked gazes with him.

"Oh-ho? A multiple weapon user?"

"I tend to like learning different types of weapons in case I find one suitable for me. Tonfas aren't too difficult to learn." She swung it once more, holding it in front of herself in a defensive position and smiled. She normally tried out a weapon once or twice, getting a feel of them before definitely deciding on them. Thankfully she picked up some tonfas one day during training practice before this. Gave her a little bit of an edge that she knew how to wield it without spinning it like a loon, hitting nothing let alone looking like she knew what she was doing. "So, you wanna get bitten?"

Hibari smirked at her saying that. "You're going to bite me? This is why I call you a kitten. Kitten always gives love bites."

She laughed. "Guess I fit the bill now." She twirled the tonfa once more before glancing at the door. A shadow was there, falling away from the door, and whoever was there let out a scream as if they fell backwards.

The scream sounded strangely familiar…

"Hm?" Hibari must have taken notice of what distracted her, turning his head towards the door and opened it. "Oh my, look at this herbivore snooping on our conversation." He sounded a little sadistic. No one could miss the sound of irritation in his tone as he walked into the stairway before dragging someone back by their collar.

"W-wait! I didn't mean to do it! I was just- you know!"

Isamu Fukushima was dragged in by the carnivore and Hibari had a calm poker face back on. "Invading on a private conversation is a bad habit, Mr. Fukushima." He looked directly over at Isamu. "Why were you snooping on us?" He wasn't going to hide his killing intent on this kid. He so badly wanted to bite him for interrupting his fun with Maeko.

The two were finally going to get into a fight to see who was the strongest…

Isamu looked at Hibari terrified, and then to Maeko. "I mean… I was wondering what was wrong with Minoru since he wasn't all flirty with the girls. So, when he came here, I thought I'd peek on him to figure out why he wasn't—I mean…" He was at a loss for words, and Maeko could clearly see where this was going. The one thing she didn't want people to draw conclusion on.

"Maeko," she said. This caused Isamu to look at her. "My name is Maeko Izumi, I'm a girl." She smiled at him, tilting her head to the side and shrugged. "I've used Minoru for a while so people wouldn't know I was a girl. I was waiting for the right time to come out and say I was a girl. Sorry you thought I was hitting on my friends even though I wasn't, and thanks for challenging me for pointless things. They were fun."

Isamu blinked at what she said. "A… girl…"

Hibari arched a brow at Maeko for telling this herbivore that she was a girl. Why would she do that so suddenly?

"You're a girl?"

"Yeah. You can ask Kyoko, Hana, Aiko, and even Tsuna and his friends in class. I'm totally a girl." She smiled and looked at Hibari. "Even Hibari knows I'm a girl. He saved me after all. Like a prince saving the princess who was in disguise."

Isamu had a sweat drop, glancing at Hibari and then Maeko. "Oh... so then since I know you're a girl you'll let me off."

"Nope, you're not off the hook. You'll have to tell why you were snooping to Hibari-kun~" She gave a mischievous grin. "After all, I'm sure he's _dying_ to hear what you were avoiding to say and give a proper punishment for listening on a couple's private conversation." She figured this was her chance to escape from Hibari. A fight with Hibari may drag on well past her time to visit the hospital where Lambo was, and she may not have time to patch herself up before seeing Yamamoto's match.

"Kitten?" Hibari must have sense she was up to something, he was looking at her.

"I'd love to stay and play, but I have to check on Lambo." She handed Hibari back his tonfa. "I promised my friends I'd meet with them there to check on him. Please?" She looked at Hibari, hopeful he'd understand why she wanted to go.

"Another time?"

"Mn. I'll keep a space open for tomorrow if you just want to go get something to eat. Maybe walk around somewhere that isn't too crowded?" She smiled.

Hibari smirked. "You know I hate crowding."

"Except when I do it, right?" She little smile and played with the end of her sleeves.

Hibari sighed at her antics, knowing he couldn't out right do what he wanted with Isamu there. She better not be doing her gestures on purpose. "Go see the little child, kitten. I'll see you around." He paused a little, and looked at her. "Also, wear a kimono to suit the color of the match tonight."

"You're going to watch?"

"Yes, might as well see you wear another kimono along with it. I'll walk you home afterwards."

"Mn! I think I have a blue one somewhere. I got a few…" She probably could hunt around for it with Aiko. "See you tonight, Hibari-kun." She giggled and walked towards the staircase. She was heading downstairs to meet with Kyoko and Haru so they could visit Lambo in the hospital. She had a couple of books she wanted to read to him, and even a stuff animal she wanted to lay beside him.

"Err… You are going to let me go, right Kyoya-san?"

Hibari glanced down at the herbivore that Maeko left him. His mouth twitched and glared at Isamu. "No, I'm going to bite you to death for ruining my time with _my_ kitten." He tossed the teen to the side and got out his tonfas.

He was going to take his sweet time punishing this herbivore so he'll never interrupt the two again.

**|||###||| At the hospital, after Nana Sawada left to take a rest. |||###|||**

Kyoko, Haru, and Maeko were sitting around Lambo's bedside. Kyoko was worried sick, and Maeko even stated she wasn't there when it happened. Haru was the new friend she made, finding the girl's bubbly-ness affectionate and was proud of her.

"Mae-chan," Kyoko said, looking at her. Maeko had finished reading a book to Lambo, and Haru had stepped out for something. "Be honest with me… Is my brother really participating in some sort of mix martial arts?"

Maeko was surprised Kyoko confronted her about this, and she knew she deserved an answer. "He is, and it's sort of a group competition." She thought of the best way to explain it to her friend without mentioning 'oh, yea, there's this crazy mafia boss who likes death matches!' to her. It's not an easy topic. "Since he already competed, he doesn't have to do anything anymore unless something else happens."

"Something else?"

Maeko could see Kyoko was indeed worried. "Like the two teams are even in wins and a tie breaker must be done to decide a winner. That sort of something… He may have to fight if that comes around."

"I see…" Her friend sighed and looked at her. "Thank you. I know I can trust you to be honest." She smiled at her.

_Honest to the point where I don't want to worry you…_

Even Maeko had to admit that sometimes the complete truth can be omitted to a point. If she told Kyoko the complete truth, she'd be worried immensely for all those participating in these dangerous ring matches.

When Haru returned, Maeko stood up and gave a small smile. "Sadly, I have to be going…" She looked over at Lambo and gently stroked his hair. "You sleep tight, Lambo-chan. I'll come see you again soon." She looked over at Haru and Kyoko. "Take care you two. I'll come back the day after tomorrow." She smiled at the two. "I did promise Hibari-kun to spend time with him tomorrow. Can't have him upset I spend more time with Lambo-chan versus him."

Haru seemed to perk up hearing that. "You two confess!?"

"Just today, sadly Isamu-kun interrupted us a bit…" Maeko gave a nervous laugh.

Kyoko seem to catch on to what she meant. "So Hibari-san is going to?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I sort of did leave Isamu-kun to be bitten to death…" She gave a sheepish look. "Hopefully he won't inform everyone I'm a girl yet. I don't want to wear a skirt so soon…"

Kyoko giggled at her comment. "Usual Mae-chan, worried about the skirt instead of Isamu-san being mad at her." She smiled at her. "See you soon, and be safe on your way home."

Maeko nodded. "Mn, see you later." She picked up her things, leaving behind what few things she had brought for Lambo. She exited the hospital and headed home. She promised Hibari she would wear a kimono for tonight's match, so she'll do just that.

The things she does to keep the carnivore happy and content while he's waiting for his turn.

**|||###||| Later in the evening, in front of Namimori Middle. |||###|||**

"I'm going to take you down with the katana." Yamamoto swung his shinai, revealing it transformed into a long edge katana. He had a look of confidence, surprising Tsuna and Squalo, Reborn stayed quiet, watching the transaction going on.

"In other words you're not going to transcend the style, but with the shigure souen style…"

"If Dad says it's invincible, then why wouldn't it be?"

"Invincible?" Squalo smirked. "Idiots who call themselves invincible, I've already buried countless hundreds of them!"

His words sent Tsuna into a panic. "No way! Yamamoto! It was the wrong choice after all!"

"Is it really… the wrong one? It feels just like standing in the batter's box with the last chance to score—you're so worked up you're getting chills."

This surprised Tsuna that his friend was talking about baseball at a moment like this.

"Yamamoto-dono… What is he saying at a time like this…?" Basil was confused.

"I see… that's right, I forgot." Tsuna's words seem to catch Basil's attention. "That's Yamamoto… Yesterday, when we heard about Squalo, I could still manage to stay focused on my own training because…" He looked over at his friend, a small smile gracing his face. "If it's Yamamoto, he'll find a way."

The Cervellos jumped up to where Squalo was, and announced that the match was going to partake again in the school. This time, it was in building B. The Cervellos left, leading Squalo to his battle arena while Tsuna and his group started to come together.

Ryohei came to the school with a bandaged up mummy right before Aiko and Maeko arrived. Aiko was still wearing her school uniform from earlier, and she glanced over just as whoever bandaged wiggled a little at Tsuna's shocked reaction to seeing them.

"Eek!" Aiko swung her schoolbag, slamming the flat part against the face of the mummy before she darted behind Maeko. "Mae-chan! There's an actual mummy!"

Tsuna sweat dropped. He thought the bandaged up person looked like a Pharaoh…

Maeko blinked, this time wearing a blue kimono and turned her head to look at her friend. "Um, that Mummy-kun looks awfully like Isamu… I mean, the head is in the same shape." She was just basing it an observations the moment, and that wasn't even close.

"Isamu!" Gokudera pulled down the bandages to see. "That Romari _ossan_ said something like 'this is a man's treatment' and _then_ he clumsily wrapped me up in bandages like this!" He seemed even more furious that she made the mistake. "And I wasn't going to go down without even knowing how the match went." He glared over at Yamamoto.

"You're such a worrywart." Yamamoto laughed.

"You're the one who's too carefree!"

"Goku-kun! You jerk!" Aiko came out from behind Maeko, her cheek puffing up a little as she glared at him angrily. "I thought you were a really mummy!"

"A real mummy!? Are you stupid or something, pip squeak?" The two glared at one another, causing both Maeko and Tsuna to sigh. However, when Gokudera try to take a step towards Aiko, he tripped. Falling flat onto his face and shocking everyone.

"Are you alright Gokudera-dono," exclaimed Basil.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna went to his side to check on him and help him back up.

Reborn made a remark. "He's an idiot after all…"

Maeko giggled a little, patting Aiko's head and smiling at her. "Nee, be nice to him a bit more. He's hurt." Her words caused her friend to pout, but she did as asked. Maeko started to head towards building B after Tsuna managed to get Gokudera unwrapped. Building B was sealed off. The windows and the entrance too were sealed off. The windows had glass sealing them from the outside, and there was a metal X crossing the entrance and bolted shut.

Reborn pointed out the door they had to use, and Yamamoto opened it up after hearing an odd sound. It was water cascading down the three floored battlefield. Holes were scattered through the roofs of individual floors, a larger one at the center probably meant for viewing the bottom floor that was filled with water and broken pieces of rubble. The Cervellos begin explaining the battlefield Aquarion, making certain that everyone was aware that the water will continue to fill the building and once it reached a determined height that a 'ferocious sea beast' will be released into the area.

This of course shocked Tsuna upon hearing about the beast.

"Isn't that interesting?"

Tsuna looked upwards and saw the assassin group. "Varia!"

"Ushishishi~" Bel rolled the completed Storm Ring between his index finger and thumb. "The amazing prince woke up in the morning with the ring in hand."

"Shit! That bastard!" Gokudera was gritting his teeth while looking up at the group.

Tsuna took notice of one more participant that was there. "Xanxus!"

Xanxus slid a glance over to the young teenagers. "Pathetic dogs should just disappear." This surprised the teens, aside from Maeko who was used to how Xanxus normally spoke. "You worms can get rid of this trash for me."

"Wha..!" Squalo looked over at Xanxus who started to leave. "Heeey!"

"Xanxus was serious." Reborn glanced at Maeko, who closed her eyes and glanced away from the infant hitman.

"Don't scare them before the match even started, Reborn." Dino's voice came from the doorway, and the teens glanced over to see the Chiavarone Tenth boss was there along with Romario.

"Dino-san!"

Dino glanced over to Yamamoto. "Yamamoto, I hope you don't mind me watching your match."

"Got it."

Dino looked to Tsuna, explaining that Hibari decided to listen to the explanation of the scramble battle for the rings yesterday. This made Maeko sweat drop, her gaze shifting away from Dino. Pretending that what happened between her and Hibari last night didn't influence it.

"He'll probably watch the match." Dino glanced at Maeko, taking notice she was wearing another kimono tonight. And he knew she didn't have a meeting today, he concluded Hibari asked her to wear it. He smiled a little at the thought. Ever since she appeared on the roof and talked to the carnivore, he had a sinking suspicion that, by the way they talked, they were flirting. An odd way of flirting, but who was he to judge?

All the way up in another building's roof, Hibari was perched on a water tank and looking down to the battle arena. "Wouldn't it be faster just to kill them all?" He yawned a little, and was bored with all the waiting going on. He glanced over to where Maeko was and smiled seeing her wearing a kimono. The hair ornament she wore with it looked like a flower from where he was at, and he was glad the flower print on the kimono was a white instead of black. Her hair was in a short, stubby, ponytail and exposed her neck; another thing he liked. He was glad she did as he asked and adjusted his elbow on his bent knee. His girlfriend was best suited in kimonos than other clothes since it showed her feminine charm.

_My girlfriend…_ Hibari didn't know what to think of that title. Girlfriend and boyfriend was their relationship status, but he considered it a little odd. She was his first actual girlfriend. He never figured he'd get one, not until he met someone so similar to himself when it came to protecting Namimori. The two got along well together, even with their witty barbs and constant possibility of fighting one another. Then there was the time he was away, hearing from his 'tutor' of the various cute sides of her. It was so irritating to hear about it. He didn't want to hear about it, he wanted to see it for himself. Of course, earlier wasn't bad either. Her pouting to get her way was adorable. He smiled thinking about how she so easily ducked out. His girlfriend, his kitten, certainly knew how to pull at his heartstrings.

His thoughts were cut short when the weather changed and began to settled in. "Fog?"

On the gym rooftop, three figures are blurred in the fog. The shapes looked eerily like a group of people who once fought against Tsuna. "Yamamoto Takeshi…" The centeral figure was the one speaking. "You must win, so as to grasp your own place."

Returning back to the group, Reborn was the one speaking about the three losses, one win, and being out of options. He figured the match was worth watching.

"All right!" Ryohei was full of zeal as usual. "Let's have Hibari join in the huddle! Where is he!?"

"That's impossible…" Gokudera seemed pale.

"Haha, yeah." Yamamoto gave a nervous smile.

"We'd definitely be killed…" Tsuna was scared at the thought.

"I think so too…" Dino knew well enough than to even bother having Hibari there.

Everyone, aside from Ryohei and Basil, knew extremely well that Hibari hated crowding and being part of a group. A group huddle would spell doom and him coming to attack them for even thinking of making him join in a huddle.

"I won't allow exceptions!"

"All right, all right…" Tsuna was trying to pacify his sun guardian. "I don't mean we should replace him, but… wouldn't it be alright if we just included Basil-kun?"

"Eh?" Basil was surprised. "This one…? Is that okay?"

"I'm fine with it if the tenth says so."

"We're all in this together, aren't we?" Tsuna held up the tail part of Lambo's clothes, the very same one he had when they huddled for Gokudera's fight. "Of course, Lambo too…"

Yamamoto thought of something and glanced over at Maeko and Aiko. "Oh, shouldn't they join in too?"

Tsuna blinked at him suggesting it, surprising the two girls as well.

"What do you mean?" Maeko gave a calm look over to Yamamoto. "It's not really my battle. I'm just here for moral support." She sighed and smiled. "You don't need to include me in it. I'm fine. Aiko can join if she wants." She glanced at her friend.

"Oi!" Ryohei seemed to pick up something about Maeko before Aiko could speak. "Stop being so humble and reserved, Maeko!" He gave a little fist pump with his good arm. "Join in on the huddle!"

Maeko sweat dropped at his words. "It's quite alright Ryohei-senpai… You don't have to include me…" She wasn't all certain about joining in on that. "I'm part of the Izumi family, and even as an ally I cannot join in. I mean, Dino isn't joining in either…"

Dino gave a shocked look. "Why are you dragging me into this!?"

"To prove a point. The Chiavarone family is allies to Vongola just like Izumi is. I don't see you in the huddle either." Maeko gave a flat look to Dino, making the blonde sweat at her words. She certainly had a point.

"Y-yeah… but still…." He was sweating bullets.

"Nee-nee~ Ryohei-senpai?" Aiko gently tugged on his sleeve, catching his attention and she smiled at him. "I'll take Maeko's place. That way she doesn't get in trouble with Varia if she's joining in the huddle." She glances at Tsuna. "Is that okay, Tsuna-kun?"

Tsuna blinked at what she said, glancing at Maeko who seemed to be looking away. He could see that she was getting uncomfortable with Ryohei's insisting she be part of the huddle. Although he suspected why she was being neutral, he was fine with it. Tsuna gave a small smile. "I'm okay with it. Nii-san," Tsuna looked over at Ryohei, "let's have Aiko join instead of Maeko-san."

Ryohei looked a little disappointed and shrugged. "Alright." He grabbed Aiko with his uninjured arm and tugged her into the huddle with the rest of the group. "Yamamoto FIGHT!"

"OH!" Came the unison of those in the huddle.

"Would the guardians of the rain please gather in the center? In addition, due to submersion, the audience area will be outside the school building," said a Cervello. "The match will be projected onto a giant screen set in the wall. All persons other than the guardians should vacate the premises."

"Well, go get 'em Yamamoto!" Ryohei said before leaving out of the area.

"Don't you dare lose." Gokudera glared at Yamamoto as he left.

"Okay." Yamamoto was grinning at them as they left.

"We… well, do your best." Tsuna gave a nervous look to Yamamoto.

"Yeah! See you after." Yamamoto headed deeper into the building.

Tsuna turned to glance at Yamamoto, silently hoping his friend to be careful. Maeko trailed behind Tsuna, being the last to leave before the door to the building slammed shut. "Maeko-san," Tsuna said, turning around to her and looked into her eyes. "Can you…" He looked uncertain about asking her this. He wanted answers about the uses of Minoru. She said that it would fill him with confidence if he had doubts. Yet he didn't know if he could ask her how she would feel in his shoes, she's already the head of her mafia family. "Never mind…" He returned to his guardian's side, and left Maeko standing there stunned.

Although he didn't go through with it completely, she wasn't expecting Tsuna to ask her for anything. She had a feeling he was withholding it for later.

She hurried over to where she could see the screen. Once there, her gaze slid over to where Varia was and noticed Xanxus was sitting in a chair. The two hardly have exchanged words since the meeting they had and she wasn't expecting much. The two knew their roles and they didn't need to speak again unless it was necessary. Her gaze went to the screen as the rain guardian match was about to begin. This match had no time limit, but there is one if you consider the raising water level and the unleashing of the ferocious sea beast as one.

"Heeey! Looks like you haven't learned your lesson!" Squalo drew his blade closer to his body in a horizontal position. "I'll make you regret not running away a week ago!"

"Haha!" Yamamoto looked as calm as ever. "You won't know if you don't give it a try."

Superbi Squalo versus Yamamoto Takeshei: scramble for the Guardian of Rain ring.

"Fly!" Squalo moved his right arm to his left side, taking a step forward as Yamamoto lunged forward. A horizontal swipe, moving left to right, was effortlessly ducked by Yamamoto. He kept his arm angled, running forward as he gaze behind him as he triggered four small bullet-like projectiles to shoot out of the sword and into the water in at the teen's feet. Yamamoto saw the move, jumping to the side and managing to dodge it.

Squalo landed on his feet, facing Yamamoto as water splashed around him. "Ho, avoided it, did you?"

"Yikes. The daily image training I did after losing to you paid off."

"Image training?" Squalo grinned, his teeth bared. "That trash. Was this…" He lunged forward, dashing swiftly, "in the images?" By dashing, he somehow disappeared from in front of Yamamoto and the only thing left of his presence there was the ripple of water.

This shocked Yamamoto. "He disappeared..?"

The pillar that was a little behind Yamamoto had a blur shot out from it. Most who couldn't see it wouldn't have seen the Varia captain leaping out behind with his right arm drawn back as he was prepared to attack. Yamamoto sensed him, turning around and managing to block the attack with his shinai.

"Heey!"

Tsuna and Basil were shocked at how quick Squalo was. Tsuna didn't even see that it was Squalo that came out from behind the pillar.

"If you thought that was my real strength… big mistake!" Squalo released more bombs at such short quarters. He leapt back from the attack, a smug look on his face as he watched the swirling cloud of water forming. That was before he noticed something off.

"What… the shape of the cloud…" Tsuna was puzzled.

"He drew his sword." Reborn was on Dino's shoulder.

"Eh?"

"Yamamoto-kun has finally drawn his blade," Maeko said with a smile. "Now the real battle begins."

Reborn nodded. "This is Shigure Souen Style's Seventh defensive form, _Spraying Rain._"

Squalo landed on his feet, water splashing upwards as he looked behind him with a grin. "What was that!?"

"He dodged long-hair's blast!" Tsuna was surprised.

Maeko sweat dropped a little at the nickname that got stuck with Squalo. She wasn't going to comment about it. For a swordsman, he did have long hair which could cause trouble. But she knew better, just like Dino, to not let his image fool her. Even if he dressed femininely and if he managed to pretend even for a little while to be well behave…

Then he'd be as much of a terror as his nickname in Varia.

Although Dino pointed out that Yamamoto's style was still rough around the edges; Maeko had to agree. Reborn stated that Yamamoto had practice non-stopped when he wasn't watching the other guardian matches.

"However…" Reborn was watching Yamamoto's stance on the screen. "No matter how much he hones his stamina and reflexes with baseball practice, there is a vast difference between learning the forms and using them during actual combat. Let along during this kind of life-or-death struggle. When an ordinary person can fight fearlessly when suddenly plunged into the midst of battle, other than the fact they are a remarkable idiot… It also means they are nothing less than a natural-born assassin."

"Yamamoto an assassin!?" Tsuna had a shocked look on his face. "Reborn!"

"Well either way aren't I, as the one who noticed Yamamoto, the best?"

"In the end, he's just praising himself!" Tsuna couldn't believe Reborn's ego sometimes.

Reborn glanced over at Maeko. "Then again, Maeko use to do that too. Right, Maeko?"

Tsuna blinked, glancing over at Maeko whose attention was concentrating on the screen. He was trying to imagine Maeko recklessly fighting in this sort of situation, but couldn't think of any unless he pictured her like Hibari when he fought random bunches of punks.

_Like Hibari…_ Now that he thought on it, aside from a few different physical features on them, the two probably wouldn't be distinguishable from behind. Maeko was a little shorter than Hibari but not enough for most to notice. So unless someone saw her turn around while she was wearing glasses, they wouldn't know she wasn't the President of the Disciplinary Committee. He remembered the first time he bumped into Maeko the very first time. He was so scared that he bumped into Hibari, that when he noticed her turn around was such a relief to him. Even more so when he found out how quiet she was in class. She, at the time, appeared to be nothing like Hibari.

Funny how little he knew about her then…

"However," Dino said, drawing Tsuna's attention back to the battle. "It's dangerous if he continues to rely on the Shigure Souen style."

"Dino-san's saying that kind of thing again… But Yamamoto's moves have actually been really effective." Tsuna was trying to make an argument that Yamamoto's still might have a chance.

"Heeeeeeyyyy!" Squalo's foot splashed in the water as he charged full speed at Yamamoto, his sword dragging in the water. "Don't freeze up on me! Weakling!" He swung his sword, throwing more bullets of bombs at Yamamoto. The water flowed on either side of the teen, effectively trapping him in the middle. Even Yamamoto knew this. "Disappear!"

Yamamoto looked a little nervous. "Um… at a time like this I should…" He shifted his hand positions, the tip of his katana in the water. "This." His gaze became serious, swinging the sword upwards and causing a wave of water to follow in an arch. He did the same, changing sides and doing the same technique to create a large 'X' like wall of water in front of him.

"What the hell," Gokudera said, uncertain of what he was seeing.

"Shigure Souen style second defense form," Reborn said as Squalo sliced the water in front of him. He obviously missed his mark, a "tch" escaping the Varia member. Yamamoto was knelt down, one knee on the ground and the other was up and parallel to his katana while his left hand posed behind his weapon, the sword closer to his wristband. This was the second defensive form of Shigure Souen, _Surging Rain_.

"Obscuring his form with a wall of water and at the same time defending with a contraction of his body. That way, he wasn't hit." Basil could easily see how the defensive form was effectively used in that situation. This gave Tsuna hope, he knew it was going to be alright now.

"See, Dino-san!" He looked over at the blonde. "They're awesome after all. Yamamoto and the Shigure Souen style both!"

"It would be if that were the case," replied Dino. This surprised Tsuna. "Squalo… looks like he's very pleased about something."

"His eyes," Maeko said, causing Tsuna to look over at her. "Squalo's eyes are stating something every swordsman would fear in combat." She was looking at Varia Captain, studying him closely. Her eyes showed she was focusing closely on the participants if she noticed something with Squalo's eyes. "Even I would be afraid of him if I saw him look at me like that. This is why, when I wield Minoru, I don't have a confirmed style." This made the brown hair teen frown at what she meant.

"Heeeey, brat! Why didn't you attack after defending!?" Yamamoto looked a little shocked, as if he wasn't thinking about this. "You're really a complete idiot! Just now, you gave up your very last chance at wounding me!" Squalo pulled back his sword, making it closer to his left shoulder blade.

"Eh..?" Tsuna was a little confused.

"Last chance…!?"

Bel was snickering at what Squalo said. "It looks like Squalo is pretty confident," commented Mammon.

"He's just saying that because he knows he's gonna lose!" Ryohei was positive about his theory. "That's definitely just a bluff!"

Aiko glanced at Maeko. "It's a bluff, right Mae-chan?" She seemed to be on the same page with Ryohei.

Maeko was gazing at the screen, not looking away as she carefully watched this match. "Superbi Squalo bluffing?" She glanced at her friend from the corner of her eyes, startling her since she didn't gaze at her like she normally did. This was the head of the Izumi family, a child used to mafia and combat looking at Aiko now. "I would hope, for Yamamoto's sake, he is. If not… Yamamoto will taste the horrible fangs Squalo has that have shredded thousands of other swordsmen."

A shiver went up Aiko's spine, and Ryohei looked over at Maeko. "Oi! Maeko! Why are you so negative?" He has never seen her like this. "You're scaring Aiko."

"I was just stating what I know, Senpai." She looked at Ryohei, a hand on her hip as she looked rather serious. "I can't tell pretty lies when dealing with death matches. I'm being realistic. She knows me the best."

"But—"

"It's okay, Ryohei-senpai…" Aiko smiled over at him and glances back at the screen. "If Mae-chan isn't like this, I'd be questioning if she really was herself. I expected her to give me an answer I may not like, but it was honest." She looked at him, her head cocking to the side and sighs. "Blunt honesty and being truthful is a common trait Izumi family heads have. Her grandmother was like that a lot." She glanced at Maeko who was back looking at the large monitor. "Mae-chan is Mae-chan, and I don't want her to change who she is."

Laughter from the monitor drew everyone's attention back to Yamamoto. "When you say last… you sure do talk big, don't you?" Yamamoto gaze became serious once more. "Let me make this clear. This isn't all there is the Shigure Souen style."

"That's right," Reborn stated. "Shigure Souen style's four defensive and four offensive formations make up eight forms. That allows responses accordance with the circumstances."

Yamamoto held his blade shoulder length, the blade pointing directly towards Squalo. His elbows poised as he held the hilt with both hands before he began to charge forward, his form flowing as his sword went from in front of him to behind him as he dashed forward to his target. He swung from the bottom left, swinging upwards and catching Squalo since his movement was fast. In return, Squalo held his blade up in front to block the attack.

Except the thing moving past Squalo sword was an empty hand, Yamamoto's katana falling down to his other hand as he catches the blade and do a horizontal slash to Squalo's midsection. Shigure Souen Fifth offensive form: _Early Summer Rain_.

The battle for the Rain Guardian Ring just got interesting…

**|||###||| After Yamamoto defeats Squalo and a little before the 'Sea beast' is released |||###|||**

Yamamoto appeared to be hit by Squalo's blade, the prosthetic arm bent backwards to strike against the reflecting image on the water, but the real Yamamoto was in front and he landed the final blow. The back of the sword was used, avoid cutting the Varia Captain and knocked him out. Obviously this came to a shock to Squalo he was defeated. Yamamoto grabbed the ring off Squalo and wasn't prepared for what was the happen next.

The fearsome sea beast, a shark, was released into the arena. Yamamoto attempted to get Squalo out, but the Varia's captain was too prideful to let the person he lost to assist him. Pushing the teen aside, Squalo faced the lunging beast and appeared to be killed by it. Blood in the water where the shark landed was the only thing left behind from Squalo.

Yamoto gripped his weapon, gritting his teeth and closed his eyes. "Damn it…"

"…The hell was that." Gokudera was gritting his teeth at what he saw.

"The victory in the scramble of the ring of Rain goes to Yamamoto Takeshi," announced a Cervello. "Then we will announce the match-up for the next battle."

"This… this kind of ending," Tsuna said slowly.

Dino looked over at Tsuna and his guardians, they were only middle school students and had to witness a cruel battle as such. His gaze shifted to Maeko and Aiko, seeing Aiko's face buried into Maeko's arm and shivering. Obviously the sight shocked her, causing Dino to feel bad that she had to witness something like that. However, it was Maeko's reaction that surprised him. She held her kimono sleeve up to her mouth, hiding her mouth as she kept her eyes closed. _She's trying to not cry…_ Dino knew she was trying not to because, at where he stood, he could see she was biting her bottom lip hard.

"Tomorrow night's battle will be…" The Cervello's voice drew everyone's attention. "The battle between the guardians of Mist."

"Oi, Reborn, it's here!" Tsuna had a shocked look. "What should we do!? Just who is the mist person?"

"It's finally that one's turn." Reborn had a little smirk gracing his lips. Those who were on the gym's roof had heard this, leaving to prepare for the next night's battle.

|||###|||

Everyone departed, leaving and Maeko asked Gokudera to take Aiko home.

"Why can't you?" He looked a little agitated that he was taking Aiko home for the second time.

"Gokudera, please?" Maeko looked at Aiko, who was holding onto Maeko's kimono sleeve tightly. "Maybe you can calm her down… I don't think anything I would say now would do it." She smiled sadly. "I cannot lie to her… Even if it is a white lie, a lie is a lie."

Gokudera grimaced a little, looking at Aiko and sighs. "Alright…" He knew Maeko had a bit of a point. He heard her when she talked to Aiko during the match. She was so honest to the point that made Aiko uneasy. Placing a hand onto Aiko's shoulder, he escorted her to her home after seeing the Tenth off home.

"Maeko," Dino said, surprised she was still here. "I'll walk you home."

Maeko turned her attention to him and blinked. "You don't need to, Dino."

"Eh? Why not?" He gave a confused look. Before he could ask, he felt an intent killing aura he felt before and side stepped from a strike from Hibari's attack. "Why are you here!" He grabbed his whip, prepared to take on Hibari since he had Romario with him.

Hibari drew his tonfas up, wanting to bite Dino before he slide a glance at Maeko. She had a frown on her lips and he put his weapons down. "I'm escorting her home. You're not needed."

This made the Chiavarone tenth boss stare at the two. "Escorting her home…?" He glanced at Maeko. "Is this true, Mae?"

Hibari glared at the blonde for calling her Mae instead of Maeko. "I think I have time to bite you to death."

"Boys," Maeko warned as the two got into a combat stance. "Behave or I'll behave you myself." She shot both glares, walking closer to Hibari and smiled at Dino. "Hibari-kun insisted on taking me home after the matches. Isn't he a gentleman?"

Dino arched a brow at hearing this. "He insisted?"

Hibari stood straight, turning away and looking at Maeko. "We're leaving."

"Kyoya!" Dino looked right at him. "Don't boss Maeko around or I'll make you regret it."

Hibari smirk. "Is that a promise or a threat?" He gripped his tonfas.

"A vow, I won't tolerate anyone manhandling Maeko." Dino was serious about this.

The two were having a glaring match before Maeko clapped her hands. "Are you two done with your egos so I can head home?" She gave both a peeved stare. She moved closer to Hibari and smiles at Dino. "He's not trying to be bossy. Being impatient, yes, but he's not bossy with me. He knows I'd take his tonfa and beat him with it if he thinks he can boss me around." She giggled, earning a sheepish look from the disciplinary president.

"Oh… alright." Dino scratched his head, finding that Maeko could easily subdue Hibari quickly. "Take care on your way home. I've got a few things to investigate around here. Can I have your permission to do so, Mae?"

"It's nothing that's going to take a bite out of me afterwards, is it?"

Dino sweat dropped at hearing that. "No, I'm positive it won't and it will not disturb the peace here."

"Then you have permission to investigate. Good luck with it." She smiled at Dino, linking her arm with Hibari's and looks at him. "Sorry for making you wait. Business as usual," she said.

He snorted a little at what she said. He started to walk off, not paying heed to her waving at Dino and just headed straight towards her home. He was seething a little on the inside. Dino said a few things that struck a nerve with him. How dare he call her Mae… He wasn't going to complain to her. Her job was to make sure other families obey the order her family had established.

The two walked quietly and Hibari turned to see if anyone followed. He didn't sense anyone, and grabbed Maeko's face.

"Hibari—"

He didn't give her a chance to object, his lips sealing her and kissing her a little rough. He wanted to vent a little and for her to know that he kind of was upset. Turning her completely in his arm, his left hand cupped her cheek while he kissed her at his leisure. The kiss went from rough to tender, slowly kissing her and pulling back only to see she was breathless. A smirk formed on his face, finding this look ever so satisfying. "Yes kitten?"

She blinked a few times, shaking her head to gather her thoughts and looked at him. "Thanks, now I lost what I was going to say."

"Kissed you speechless?" His smirk got more smug.

She hit his chest, giving him a look and sticks her tongue out at him. "Maybe…" She sighs softly and gazed at his chest before closing her eyes. "Hibari-kun… Can we just stand here like this?"

Hibari frowned a little at her request. His arms slid around her waist, pulling her closer into a hug, thinking that maybe she needed this. He saw what had happened to the long haired sword man from the opposing team; his gaze slipped over to her form to see her cover her face with the sleeve of the kimono. "Go ahead."

Maeko gripped the front of his shirt, a tear slipped out of her closed eyelids before more began to fall. She may have not known Squalo personally, but he actually was the first person to know something was up with her when she had to meet with him a week after her grandmother passed.

She tried to play it off, but he constantly stared at her as if he didn't believe that she was being honest. All the Varia rain guardian did was place his hand on her head and tell her not to push herself before she burst into tears. At that time, she couldn't help it. Even without knowing what was going on in her life, he knew she needed some encouragement. He grumbled about her crying and she played up on it before thanking him. _"When you're upset, it shows on your face, Mae,"_ he said to her that day. _"Your lip was trembling and you were avoiding my gaze. I won't ask what's up, but don't bottle things up. If you want to be a cry baby, cry dammit." _

Hibari stood there quietly, holding her and he waited until she was finished. He didn't have the words that would soothe her. Her grieving for this man must have some merit, and more than likely he'll understand when she wanted to discuss it with him.

After some time, Maeko raised her head and rubbed her eyes. "Sorry… I just…" She sniffed; her eyes puffy and stinging. She hadn't cried in a long time.

"It's fine." He leaned close and kissed her forehead and licked her cheek of the tear stain. He smiled at the taste. "If you want to cry like this, I won't complain. Although," he said, his smile turning a little sadistic. "Hopefully I can make you cry another way one day."

Maeko blushed furiously, dropping her hidden dagger and drew it against his throat. "Hibari…" She glared at him something fierce, trembling with anger at him bluntly stating something like that. How could he! How can he think something so vulgar right now!

He grinned at her drawing a weapon on him. He touched the dagger, taking note it was the real deal. "So my kitten does hide her claws in that kimono." He looked at her calmly. "I'm not expecting it within months, but I know sooner or later it will happen." He gave an earnest look to her. "As much as I would enjoy a fight, that would not bode well since you promised me personal time."

She pulled the dagger back, slipping it into the sleeve of her kimono and grumbles. "Fine… You get away unscathed for a perverted comment." She was a bit upset, not expecting such a comment before hand. But he was making statements of the future; making her wonder if they would or wouldn't be together later on. Would they? Would they still be infatuated with each other or divert paths before finding new loves?

While still deep in thought, Hibari leaned in and nibbled on her ear and caused her to jump a little with a yelp. "Stop day dreaming. Come." He smiled at her and stood there protectively.

She sighed, a small smile gracing her lips as she realized he seemed confident about their relationship. She was having doubts and she just shook her head. Walking beside him towards him, she hooked her arm with his and smiled. "Shall we do patrols for our date? That way we're keeping the streets of Namimori safe before the match. I can ask the teachers time off."

"…You sure, kitten?"

Maeko looked at him to see he was a little concerned. "I'm sure about it." She smiled at him. "The teachers send me any missed material ever since a few months ago. I've kept up with the rest with relative ease, and pass with Bs' in my class."

"Oh?" He smiled at hearing this, nuzzling his nose against her cheek. "Good thing my kitten is smart." He pulled back and led her home so she could get some rest. The two have much to do if they were going to be patrol Namimoir then they would both need their strength. For all the carnivore knew, there were some noisy herbivores that will no doubtfully disturb the peace and force the two to take action.

Tomorrow, he'll have a small date with Maek while on patrols.

**|||###||| The next day, in Varia's Hotel Suite |||###|||**

Xanxus had one foot propped up onto the nearest table, Gola Mosca standing right behind him as he relaxed and enjoyed his whiskey. Mammon walked into the room.

"Boss," the small, baby-like Varia member said. "I've come to obtain your permission. I wish to use _that_ power in tonight's scramble battle."

"Hnn, you're pretty fired up Marmon." Bel turned around on the couch he was lounging on to see why he was so fired up.

Levi seemed to sense something was up. "Why go that far? Even with Squalo's loss we have an advantage beyond advantage with three wins and two losses."

"You nervous," inquired Bel. "You stick picture hasn't be able to find the opponent yet?"

"Don't be absurd," chided Mammon. "I don't care about the opponent. My power is the kind of thing that will become hard to manage if I don't brush up on it every now and then."

Bel grinned. "I can't wait~ for my first time seeing Mammon use _that._"

Xanxus slide his gaze from the window towards his mist guardian. "You have my permission."

Those were the only words that Mammon needed to hear.

**|||###||| In the streets on Namimori |||###|||**

Maeko and Hibari were walking around the streets of Namimori, patrolling and making certain that all was fine. Hibari kept close enough to her, his gaze sweeping around to make sure no one was disturbing the peace or crowding and causing a ruckus. For the first time, he took notice of the warm reception Maeko got while he was patrolling with him.

"Min-kun," said a housewife who was on her way home from shopping. "Patrolling with someone? That's a shock! Oh, there are a couple of ruffians from last time hanging around the liquor store. Hopefully they're not hassling the owner again."

Hibari arched a brow at this information. They willingly gave her this information…

"Mn, we'll double check it. Thank you for informing me. Have a pleasant and blissful day, ma'am." She smiled at the woman, waving at her and continued to walk.

Hibari kept with her pace, glancing at her from the corner of her eye as they continued with the patrol. Usually he had no qualms getting information, but the people who knew Maeko when she patrol offered information up to her like candy. Not only was it convenient but also they could swing by and deal with problems at the tip's location.

"Something on your mind, Hibari?" She looked at him, leaning forward while having her hands held behind her back. She was in her school uniform, and Minoru was in the shinai holder on her back. She managed to find another pair of glasses to wear today, and Hibari was finding her looking rather bookworm-like. Like a nerdy herbivore, even though his kitten wasn't one.

"You've got a reputation that I wasn't expecting." He glanced at her, smiling a little and looks ahead. "Should have expected one, but not as warm and welcoming as this. People willingly report things to you."

She smiled at hearing this. "Well, I tend to follow traditions. Keeping a good relationship with the community is a must."

"Is that so?" He glanced over at her. "I'm curious of the other Izumi family traditions that you keep, Minoru." He smirked a little when she gave him a puzzled stare. He knew better to call her Minoru in public due to everyone not knowing her name was actually Maeko. Gave him plenty of ideas of how to tease her, and that included making talk only boys did around each other. He couldn't help smirking at the thoughts that passed through his mind.

Maeko sighs and shakes her head. "Yeah, there are a lot of things most are surprised about when it comes to traditions." She kept pace with him as they continued their rounds.

"Eek! It's Minoru-kun!"

The couple turned their heads together, spotting a group of girls gawking at them. There was only three, but you would almost swear there were seven or eight by how they were talking so much.

"Wah! He looked this way! Minoru-kun looks so cool!" The light brown haired girl squealed.

"He's with Kyoya-san? Amazing! Minoru-kun is fearless!"

"And so cute! How adorable!" The short haired girl squirmed where she stood.

"He's more than adorable! I'd date him if he wasn't so sheepish sometimes."

The blacked haired girl gasped. "But him being so aloof is what makes him cool!"

The short haired girl nodded. "Exactly! At least being aloof is better than mean. Like Kyoya-san."

"Kyoya-san scares me… I'd be happy if Minoru-kun stood to protect me! Like a prince!"

Maeko had a sweat drop forming, not realizing how popular she was when it came to some girls in other classes. Now that she thought on it, she had a few of them take pictures of her or give her chocolates on Valentines. She didn't think much of it, and just brushed it off since she was a girl. Although, she had seen a few fan-girls that chased after Hibari; guess it's a good thing neither fandom clashed today.

"Do I even?" Hibari looked at Maeko.

"Nope. Let's just keep walking, pretending we didn't see them and do the patrol." She smiled at him.

He smiled a little. "Fine, I won't bite the loud, obnoxious, crowding herbivores."

The two started to walk on before she heard the sound of someone running at full speed. She had that feeling…

"_MINORU!_"

Maeko sighed, turning to the side at the exact same time as Hibari to avoid someone who attempted to tackle Maeko. A boy their age jumped between them, slamming onto his face and skidding a little. Bright orange hair was evident and the teen recovered, jumping to his feet and swiftly turning to glare at her. Maeko snorted at his glare. "Don't start Benjiro. Isamu wouldn't be happy."

"Who is this?" Hibari looked at Maeko, trying to figure out who this idiot was. He knew Isamu, the herbivore he bitten yesterday for interrupting the two.

"Isamu's younger brother," she clarified. She felt the stares of the girls.

"Yea!" Benjiro swung his arms furiously in circles. "You beat mah bro up! I'm gonna get you good!"

Maeko sweat dropped at hearing this. She didn't beat Isamu up. That was Hibari.

"Get out of the way, we're busy." Hibari gave a fierce glare. "And I'll do the same thing I did to your brother yesterday for interrupting us."

Maeko inwardly groaned, glancing over to the girls to see their eyes light up hearing this.

"Wha? That was you!" Benjiro glared at Hibari before flinching at realizing who he was getting mad at. "Hi… You're!" He paled before darting away screaming. "I'LL GET MY REVENGE LATER!"

Hibari snorted and glanced at Maeko. "Let's go. I have somewhere we have to go before a specific time."

Maeko tilted her head at hearing this. "Oh?" She smiled a little, forgetting about the girls and leaned forward a bit. "Is that a surprise you planned?"

"Of course, I planned it since today's a day I have you all to myself." Hibari nodded in the direction they were to go while on patrol.

This got her giddy, wondering what her boyfriend had planned for her. She walked closer and smiled softly. "Sounds like a date."

Hibari smirked. "It is one, just for us." He turned back around and started to head towards the location. It took some time for them to get to the location, a home far enough away and Kusakabe was standing here with a bag in his hand. "Got everything?" Hibari glanced at the paper bag his vice president was holding.

"Yes, Kyoya-san, I have everything you requested." He handed over the paper bag to Hibair who, in turn, handing it over to Maeko.

"Change."

Maeko blinked at his sudden demand. "Huh?"

"Change and we'll go." Hibari looked at her sternly. "Quickly before we run out of time."

She didn't understand completely why they were running out of time, but she went quietly to a side room to get change.

"Continue to patrol the area and call me if anything pops up." Hibari looked over at Kusakabe. "If you can't handle it, call me immediantely and I'll come handle it. Even if it means cutting my time with her short…"

Kusakabe nodded and smiled a little. "I will. I can handle most situations, so enjoy your date. Hibari smiled a little before a shriek made both boys turn towards the room Maeko was in.

She came storming out, face flushed red and looking highly upset. Dressed in a long sleeve white dress that fell to her knees, a thick black belt cinching right where her waist was and it was paired up with brown suede knee high boots that made her a little taller. "Hibari!" She looked shocked, in her hands were a wig, one with longer hair and a few other accessories she was suppose to be wearing. "What's the meaning of this!? Why do I have to wear something…something so girly!?"

The carnivore took his time to savor the look of his short haired girlfriend's attire, amused at the choice and fashion accessories for her. They suited her, and he could tell there was make-up somewhere too since he could see what looked like tubes also in her grasp. "I didn't choose this get-up," he clarified. He looked her directly in the eye and smiled. "Your aunt did the picking. She figured to keep who you are in school a secret still, dressing like this would throw everyone for a loop." He had to agree. A long haired Maeko was something he wanted to see.

One of these days, she's going to grow her hair out so he could have something to play with.

"Aunty Sakura!" She gaped at hearing this. She wasn't expecting her aunt to pick out clothes. She did recall that before Hibari went home, he went to meet her aunt in private. He said he wanted to speak with the woman who raised her instead of her parents since he couldn't meet her grandmother. "She did this?" She gestured to the clothes.

"Yes, now please finish changing. We're going to miss it." He seemed a little impatient.

"But—"

Hibari gave her a glare. "Finish changing. You'll see."

Maeko sighed, walking back into the room and changed. A few minutes later, she came back out with the wig on. Long black hair cascaded down her back, and the silver headband completed the assemble for her head. Her lips were already pink, but a little bit of lip gloss were applied of the same hue. Draped on her right wrist were a set of nude and white bracelets.

"Better?"

Grey eyes slide over every little inch of his nervous lover. Finding the assemble just as he imagine; perfect for her alone for today. "Yes, so let's go." He handed her an off-white cape to wear today, and she slipped it on. He glanced over at his vice president before taking Maeko's hand and leaving her out of the house.

Time for the date he planned.

Maeko was blushing the whole time, embarrassed as people were staring at the two as they walked around toward whatever destination Hibari was taking them. She found it embarrassing, not understanding why so many guys were staring at her. Before this outfit change, no guy would look at her like they guys were now and most of the time girls were gaggling at her. Guess now she looked like a proper girl and the men around were noticing her charm.

Although, none dare get near while Hibari was around. The carnivore was making a clear statement by holding her hand in public. The path he took was the one where most of his enemies were at, and it was also a little gamble to see if any one of them could spot who she was.

_This girl is mine. Touch her, and I'll bite you to death until you realize your mistake._

"Hi-Hibari?"

"Hm?" He glanced her way, wondering if he was walking too fast since she was wearing heels.

"Where are we going?" She had noticed where they were in Namimori, but had no idea what they were going to do at this time in the afternoon.

"Something cute," he commented.

She frowned at his words, going to ask him before he stopped at a booth. She looked up at the sign above and stared. It was a petting zoo. A petting zoo was there date.

_Petting zoo is something cute?_ She had to figure out what was so cute about it. Hibari paid for the tickets to let them in, he smiled and dragged her into the zoo before she laid eyes on some baby goats.

"Oh my gosh! Hibari-kun! That's a baby goat over there!" She walked over closer to the pen, smiling and looking at all the baby animals. "Aww, aren't they cute?" She turned around, her hair twirling with her as she smiled at him. "Don't you think so? Can we pet them and feed them?"

Hibari smiled at her, walking closer and linked her arm with his. "They are cute. Let's find a food dispenser and feed them. Maybe pet them too." He gazed at her and she giggled.

"So this is the date?"

"Mhm. It is." He seemed rather satisfied at her reaction when she first saw the animals.

She smiled warmly at Hibari. "This is going to be so much fun! You're the best!" She leaned over and kissed his cheek before skipping over to one of the food dispensers to get the pellets needed to feed some of the animals.

Hibari watched her, walking behind her and smiling the whole time. Seeing her so happy and content with what he came up with on a short notice was perfect. He couldn't have been more pleased by the results. To the carnivore, nothing more than enjoying a relaxing date with his kitten and cute animals.

It was a win-win situation.

**|||###||| Later in the evening, in the gymnasium. |||###|||**

Standing in the back, closer to the stage was Varia. Bel was leaned against the stage, Levi standing beside him, Xanxus sitting in a chair, and Gola Mosca standing right behind him. Mammon stood next to the Cervellos, and Tsuna was wondering about the little guy. Everyone was in the gymnasium, include Maeko and Aiko who were wearing normal clothes. Although, Tsuna noticed that Maeko was wearing something a little odd with her attire. Despite he normally saw her in the school uniform, she was wearing clothes he never thought she would wear.

Knee high, high heel boots and shorts; paired this up with a long sleeve shirt with a random design. It wasn't her usual, and it did cause Gokudera to gawk at her for the sudden feminine clothes change. Despite her looking calm, collected, and not affected by the stares she was getting was proving she knew what she was doing with coming in dressed like this. This surprised him since he hardly sees her dressed anything like a girl aside from when she got into a kimono.

Maeko was certainly full of surprises today.

Until he was reminded by Reborn, the mist guardian of his was going to show up soon. He had sinking, familiar feeling, and his eyes darted towards the door as two past enemies walked in. Ken and Chikusa from Kokuyo Junior High Gang; if they were around, Tsuna realize that without a doubt _he _wasn't too far behind.

Mukuro Rokudo was the Mist Guardian for Tsuna's side.

Just as the two about to fight, a voice breaks the tension.

"_Le nego._" The Kokuyo Junior High school jacket was tossed into the air."_Il mio nome e' Chrome._" The person throwing it, wearing a skull eye patched and boots stood before Tsuna and his group. A familiar pineapple haircut, a trident weapon, and from Kokuyo Junior High; however, the fact that the person holding the trident was wearing a skirt proved that it was indeed a female. "_Chrome Dokuro._"

"Extremely…" Ryohei was giving a blank stare. "Weird name…"

Although the introduction was prominent, Gokudera yelled to not believe the girl was who she said she was.

"But she's not… Rokudo Mukuro…" Tsuna had this feeling she wasn't.

"Really!" Gokudera was surprised. "Do, do you really think so?"

"It's not… um… but for some reason…" Tsuna couldn't quite put it to words.

"You spoke for me." Chrome walked over to Tsuna. "Thank you, boos." She kissed his cheek. Causing an uproar in itself. Of course, this got Gokuder and the other to Kokuyo members. Despite that, Chrome interfered by saying they had no choice in the matter and asked Tsuna if she was worthy of her position as the guardian of mist.

"Then we'll leave it to you," said Tsuan.

"Wha!" Gokudera looked over at Tsuna. "Is that really alright tenth!?"

"I don't really know howto put it but it seems like wouldn't work… if it wasn't her." Tsuna was looking at Chrome, coming to the conclusion that she had to been picked for a specific reason.

Chrome sighed. "Thank you." Chikusa sent a smart 'told you so!' to Gokudera, who got irritated. Colonnello appeared to arrive, stating suspicions he had about the baby that was on Varia's side looked highly suspicious.

"Maeko," snapped Gokudera. "Is she telling the truth!?" He wanted to see if Maeko, the Izumi head who couldn't be deceived, would know if this girl wasn't Mukuro.

Chrome turned her attention to Maeko, not realizing that the Izumi head had witnessed the transaction. "Who is..?" Chrome had no idea who Maeko was; as well as Ken and Chikusa. This was the first time they've ever crossed paths with her.

"The Lotus of truth, head of the Izumi family." One of the Cervellos stated. "No illusion can fool her or deceive her. Deception and lies will never work on her." This made Ken and Chikusa look at her surprised to hear this as well as a little nervous.

"I am aware of who you are." Maeko gave a smug look. "Ken, the yo-yo wonder who injured both Gokudera and Royhei-senpai during the incidents you and your leader made a while back. Chikusa, your interesting power lies in the 'channels' teeth you place in your mouth giving you animal like qualities." She turned to full face them, her arms folded under her breast as she stared at Chrome. "And Mukuro Rokudo, ringleader of the whole gang, who attacked and defeated Hibari Kyoya before dueling with Tsunayoshi Sawada. Tsuna obviously the victor of that battle before you three were carted off."

A clapping sound was heard, a red-headed girl strutting in wearing the same uniform as Chrome. "Well put, Maeko-sama! Top of the game as always," she said, bowing in a mocking way. "I applaud you." She stood up, a grin plastered on her face as she looked at Maeko. "Good thing I got that intel, eh, boss-chan?"

Ken and Chikusa looked shocked at the green-eyed girl who spoke. "Kagami!" Chikusa growled. "Kagami Nishi! I should have known! You traitor!"

"Huh!?" Tsuna looked between the two groups. "Should have known?"

Kagami giggled. "Aye, I'm the spy for the Izumi family who watched over your little group." She smirked and looked at Tsuna. "While that whole incident went down, I documented it all for boss-chan here so she was aware. I'm not the only spy she has. Maeko-sama is… resourceful."

"Kagami," Chrome said. "Does that mean you told her about the ring I held?"

Kagami nodded. "Of course I did. Little hard to not notice a fancy ring you were carrying around."

Gokudera was still absorbing what was said. Most of Tsuna's group was finding it hard to believe that Maeko was that well informed of the incident to the T. Here was a proclaimed spy, and Maeko was not making any efforts to say otherwise. "This girl is your spy!?" Gokudera glared at her. He was pissed. Pissed at the fact that not only did she know what was happening, and pissed that she didn't do a damn thing.

"This and that are two different things. The incident was beyond my control, and Reborn-sensei told me to, promptly, butt out. Kagami wouldn't lie to me." Maeko looked calmly at Gokudera. "If Mukuro was aware of Kagami's alliance, he might have an insight of who I was. At the time, I was in an… unstable state. A few tired taking me on then… let's say it wasn't in their favor."

Kagami grinned. "In their favor? More like they met their Grim Reaper."

"Kagami!"

The red head raised her hands up in surrender, submitting to Maeko's deadly glare and became silent.

Chrome turned Maeko, gripping her trident. "Maeko Izumi…" She looked into her eyes. "Do you think I'm lying about who I am?"

Maeko stood there, looking Chrome in the eye and walked over to her slowly. Ken and Chikusa tensed as she came closer. Close enough that her face was directly in front of Chrome who wasn't flinching at the close interaction. The two stared at one another for a moment before Maeko sighed.

"Gokudera, you're so paranoid." Maeko gave a soft smile to Chrome. "I'm expecting some high classed illusions, Chrome Dokuro." She walked past Chrome, surprising the Mist Guardian with her words. Chrome looked over at her, wondering if Maeko wasn't letting out what she truly knew.

"Maeko-san…" Tsuna looked at her, causing the Izumi head to turn her attention to him. The two locked gazes before Tsuna returned his attention back to the match. _She has her reasons…_ He knew Maeko didn't lie. For her to not inform him of her spy, she may have informed Reborn about it and the baby hitman rarely tells him anything.

The Cervellos explained the match, instructing everyone else to stay in the designated areas around the gym. They also stated that the whole gym, and anything inside it was useable in this battle. It was the battle of illusions, and it was going to begin. Chrome flat out refused to be part of the usual battle cry routine, and headed to the center to prepare for her fight.

Mammon versus Chrome Dokuro.

Kagami stood beside Maeko, smirking at her victory over Ken and Chikusa before Maeko spoke softly. "You made them your enemy…"

"I'm used to it." Kagami gazed out towards the battlefield. "I just need the Izumi to be happy."

Maeko sighed. "Delusional much?"

"As if." Kagami glanced over at her from the corner of her eyes. "It's the truth."

"A truth you've adopted. It's not what you really want."

Kagami frowned at Maeko's words but decided to drop it. Obviously there was something Maeko sensed, something the teen tried to hide yet couldn't. What was it?

Chrome was the one to start the offensive, swirling her trident above her head before she slammed it into the floor. At first it appeared she didn't do anything, but cracks started to form and an explosion riptide began to take place. Chrome stood on one piece that rose up, a few of the spectators freaking out at the ground 'shattering' apart.

"Stupid Tsuna," Reborn said. "You know this technique."

Mammon jumped from rock to rock, leaping towards Chrome as he realized that she was a jutsu user as well. "This is child's play. I can't make any money off of that." Out of Mammon's hood, tentacles shot out and gripped Chrome's face and she screamed. Because of the attack, it canceled out Chrome's illusion.

"Huh? We're back?" Yamamoto still had his eye patch over his eye, and looked to Tsuna.

"Look over there." Reborn pointed over to where Chrome and Mammon were.

It appeared as if Chrome was getting choked by the tentacles, Mammon's tiny body on the floor as he lifted Chrome clear off the ground.

"No way!"

"Much too weak," commented Mammon. "You won't even make a good side show."

Standing behind the Varia Mist Guardian was a pair of familiar boot clad feet. "Who are you talking to?" It was Chrome, revealing to everyone that Mammon was just squeezing on a basket of basketballs that were in their container. "Over here…" A few bounced out, surprising Mammon more since he wasn't expecting that.

"Eh! The… the girl turned into a bunch of basketballs!"

"Whaa?" Gokudera was rubbing his eyes.

"How did that happen!?" Tsuna didn't seem to recall that he faced this before.

"It's an illusion," stated Reborn. This, of course, made Tsuna remember one of Mukuro's state of hell. This brought up the matter of Chrome being Mukuro.

"No," Maeko said, catching the two's attention. "A mirror reflection in the mist, two beings sharing one, and thusly appearing as if one."

Gokudera and Tsuna's jaw drop at what Maeko said. It made little sense.

The tentacles that were attacking were sliding back to Mammon, turning out to be toilet paper that he hid under his cloak. "Oh, good. You're more or less a worthy opponent. Then, I can use that to my heart's content before those two stupidly gaping chibis."

A chain fell from under Mammon's cloak, hitting the floor and the frog on his head started to have cracks on its' skin. "Let's go, Fantasma." Cracking out of the shell, the frog turned into a snake that ate its' own tail. This transformation surprised Chrome. The pacifier on his chest, glowing a bright indigo color, and the markings on his cheeks became a little longer and wider.

"That curled-up frog and indigo pacifier… So he's alive… Hey!" The pacifiers on both Colonnello and Reborn were glowing respectively. Reborn's Sun Pacifier and Colonnello's Rain Pacifier were glowing in reaction of being near another of their kind; the mist pacifier.

"As I thought… His true identity is the Arcobaleno, Viper," stated Reborn.

Colonnello to this que to explain to Tsuna's group of what they knew. This Arcobaleno was presumed missing was now, confirmed, alive. Viper was considered the strongest of the Arcobalenos, and that he had ESP among his illusionist powers; he was a psychic.

"Why didn't the pacifiers light up until now? Hey!"

"I'm not sure, but it's seems to have something to do with that chain-like implement; it seems to have sealed the pacifiers powers."

"Foolish chibis like you wouldn't understand." Viper said. "It is a byproduct of research. Unlike you, I am never negligent of the efforts to lift the curse."

Colonnello had a bad feeling. "This isn't good. This average illusionist can't stand up to that stupid chibi, hey!"

"Don't be so quick to decide that, Colonnello. Dukuor is no ordinary illusionist."

Chrome tighten her grip on her trident. "No matter who you are… I won't lose." She charged forward, swinging the weapon at Viper, he dodged the attack effortlessly and mocked Chrome's 'heroic efforts' until a big snack constricted his body.

"Mm. This giant snake isn't an illusion?"

This triggered another insant memory of another of Mukuro's techniques. The skill: State of the Beasts. Gokudera was still convinced that Chrome was possessed. But no matter what Gokudera said, Tsuna still had that feeling. A sense of that Chrome own will has never faded during this whole battle.

Viper burst out of the snakes, surprising most that he did. "It's about time I unleashed my powers, too. Thereafter, your true identity can be expose at leisure."

Swinging her trident overhead once more, Chrome slammed the hilt down in front of her. Columns of fire spewed out of the floor, surprising those who weren't use and assumed it was hot. Maeko stood in front of Aiko, who was hiding behind her thinking the fire was hot. Kagami was just as calm as Maeko, watching the whole transaction.

"Your illusions are indeed first-class. If one believes even for an instant in the reality of those columns of fire, one would be roasted alive. Therefore, your weakness is also illusions!" An icy blast escaped the hood of Viper, chilling the columns of fire and slowly started to spread on Chrome. Viper takes a time to lay a lecture to Chrome, explain why an illusion is strong against an illusion. He slammed her onto the ground, stating she was a denizen of his illusion. The more he noticed, the more he realized the trident was important.

Despite Chrome's cries, he shatters the trident with a mere flick of his finger.

"Shit…" Kagmi grimaced, causing Maeko to glance at her and then glanced to Ken and Chikusa.

All three were wearing similar grim features at what happened to Chrome.

Chrome coughed, blood spewing out and she began coughing badly before falling onto her back. Her skin turned deathly pale, terrifying all watching as her abdomen started to become sunken. It caved in, raising questions of how it was possible.

"Kagami…?" Maeko looked over at her.

Kagami gritted her teeth. "Don't worry, you'll see soon…" She had this look in her eyes. "The real battle, will begin…"

Maeko didn't understand what she meant, but she turned her gaze back to Chrome.

"Mm…. this is real…. Why is this happening? What is with this girl…?" Viper was puzzled.

"Mu…. Sama…." Deep within Chrome's mind, she recalled meeting someone in her dreams while sitting on an operation table. Her name was Nagi at the time. He came to her…

A certain pineapple illusionist came in a dream, saying he needed her.

Mist started to form around Chrome's body, catching everyone off guard.

"Ah, this? Marshaling the last of one's strength to conceal their own unsightly corpse. IT's a common behavioral patter of female illusionist." Viper seemed to think so, both Xanxus and Maeko were watching intently without saying much to see what would happen.

However, Tsuna was panicking. "He's comeing!"

"Tsuna?" Yamamoto was worried.

"It's him!"

"He…he?"

Tsuna closed his eye as he held his head, his body shivering. "He's coming!"

_The real illusionist,_ Meako thought, _now you will really be tested Mammon…_

"Rokudo Mukuro is! Mukuro is coming!"

The broken trident began to reform, blacken sand forming it in Chrome's hand and a black gloved covered the hand. Her eyes slowly opened, a similar kanji in the iris was seen as a familiar laughter filled the air. "Kufufufu."

Mist swirled violent around Chrome's body, and the laughter continued. "Kufufu. Kufufufu."

Viper looked confused. "Muu? A man's voice…?"

The trident hit the floor, sending a powerful shockwave that hit Viper and sent him flying to the floor with a 'mugyaa!'

"Kufufufu. You're showing-off quite a bit, aren't you?" Lurking in the mist, a form of a knelt man holding a trident was apparent. "For Mafia Style."

The few who didn't know Mukuro were confused on how Chrome, a girl, changed to a man. However, those who knew very well about this once time enemy wasn't at all surprised when they saw him.

"Mukuro! No mistake," Gokudera said.

"Mukuro… He's alive…"

"It's been a while." Mukuro still had his back to Tsuna, turning his head to look directly at the Vongola heir who defeated him. "I've come back… from the other side of the cycle."

"Well, lookie here…" Kagami grinned. "Decided to grace us, Sir Egoist?"

Mukuro glanced over at Kagami, surprised she was here and beside someone he didn't know. Of the whole time he knew her, she hardly bowed to him. Always offensive and refused to compromised with him. "Kagami? What brings you, the woman who despises me, here?" He smirked. "You always refused to see me, why now?"

"My boss is here. Why else?" She gestured to Maeko and smirked. "The Izumi family is important here. Surprised you weren't aware of their existence. Then again, most aren't aware that Izumi family is mafia. You were lucky she didn't deal with you herself. That baby with the lizard over there told her to butt out of you and Tsuna's problems."

Mukuro blinked, taking a good and long look at Maeko. Despite her looking female, even more so with her get up. Something about her reminded him of Hibari… Might be the short hair, but it was also her eyes. Something about the hard stare she was giving him sent a shiver down his spine. If only he could fight this girl…

"Your boss?" Obviously Mukuro was trying to understand who was the one on top.

"She was a spy!" Chikusa couldn't keep quiet about it. "She was spying on us!"

"Oh ho, I see." He gave a small smile. "You are a snake in Eden, Kagami…"

"Carry on with the battle," Kagami said. "Show me what I regret seeing last time."

Mukuro smirked at hearing this, turning his attention back to Viper who saw this as a simple side show. A side show that was a complete distraction. He then, in great detail than most, said that Mukuro Rokudo attempted to escape Vendicare. That the one before him was a fake, nothing more than an illusion since the real one had to be still in Vendicare. More than likely, Viper believed that someone shouldn't be able to project images so far from Vendicare to Namimori middle's gym.

How exactly far was Vendicare? Too far for an 'ordinary' illusionist to cast illusions; that far.

"Kufufufu. The information net of Vongola Elite Special Assass Squad Varia isn't that well informed, after all." Mukuro smirked at Viper. "I'm right here, aren't I?"

"What a troublesome guy. All right. Let's clear things up." An icy blast like the last time started to generate at the center of Viper's hood. "You are merely an illusion created by that girl, right?"

"Oh?"

"I'm not so good-natured that I would let myself lose to an illusion created by an illusionist," said Viper as he unleashed his powerful ice attack on Mukuro.

Mukuro's body became frozen, making most believe he was indeed just what Viper stated. An illusion created by Chrome. "No…" Maeko's gaze was focus on Mukuro, making Tsuna glance over at her. "He's got it wrong…" Tsuna frowned at hearing her say that. Viper got it wrong? How could he?

"The one who'll be smashed to pieces," Viper said, a hammer forming from his hood as he charged full speed at Mukuro. "Should be the body of that girl just now, right?"

"Ah!"

"Not good," exclaimed Yamamoto.

However, somehow, even incased in ice a column of fire sprouted up in front of Mukuro; vines started to coil around Viper and began to bloom. What was more shocking was what the flowers were: lotus flowers.

"Kufufufu." The ice around Mukuro defrosted instantly and formed more mist. "Just who is an illusion?"

Tsuna glanced at Maeko when he saw this. "Lotus, in the flower language, means truth."

"It means truth…?" Tsuan then realize why he looked at Maeko. The Izumi family's crest was a lotus flower, a family who bases everything they do on nothing but truth and no deception. Did Mukuro know this? Or did he use the Lotus flower to state he was truthfully there?

"What's this…power! The-the pain…" The vines constricted on the Varia member. It obvious was a surprise that Mukuro was dominating Viper in his own specialty. And even Reborn confirmed that Mukuro was indeed Tsuna's mist guardian. Although they assumed that Mukuro was the real thing and Chrome an illusion, Reborn put it into a more reasonable perspective. One they might understand more than Maeko's explanation earlier.

"You cannot consider Chrome and Mukuro as separate beings. Because there is Chrome, Mukuro can exist. Because there is Mukuro, Chrome can live." Even with this explanation, Tsuna still didn't get it. And Reborn's explanation was far simpler than Maeko's…

"Come on…" Mukuro taunted Viper. "If you keep taking your time, I'm going to warp things up… you know." He has a smug look on his face while cradling his trident, prepared to go all out on the Arcobaleno. This enraged Viper, allowing him to break the vines of the lotus and create multiple images of himself. "So weak," Mukuro stated, his eye flaming as he entered his next skill state. Skill state of Shura: hand-to-hand combat. Using his trident, he sliced away all the illusions of Viper away in several strikes.

"Muuu! An illusionist who resorts to hand-combat is heresy! I denounce you and your reincarnation cycle rubbish!" Viper was completely outraged at his.

"Oh?" Mukuro seemed surprised and amused by this.

"Humans will repeat the same life many times in infinite cycles. That's why I must keep hoarding!" The circle above his head started to get bigger as Viper prepared his next attack. "My money!"

A distortion began, the room began to swirl and it appeared that anything someone stood on would slip underneath them like slivers of wood.

"That Viper is using his full strength." Colonnello was flying and holding Reborn.

"He really has no other choice," commented Reborn. He had a point.

"Kuhahahaha! A greedy Acobaleno! How interesting… but…" He allowed his trident wedge on either side of himself. "When it comes to greet, I won't lose either." He unleashed criss-crossing columns of flames all over the battlefield along with lotus flowers as well.

Most of the rest of the spectators were becoming affected by long-term exposure to these illusions, becoming corrupted by them and feeling unwell. Out of the corner of his eye, Mukuro noticed that Maeko appeared to not be phased by all the illusions nor was Kagami. The two were still standing in place, not being affected at all, and remaining solid in reality.

_What a pair of interesting girls…_

Viper was baffled by how much power Mukuro had; however, he froze the spires again when Mukuro replied he gained all this power from hell. Just then, an image filters through Tsuna's mind. Mukuro in a tube; bound, chained, and hooked up with oxygen tubing while suspended in water. More memories flooded through: Mukuro's sacrifice for Ken and Chikusa, and when his dad, Iemitsu, discussed Mukuro being Tsuna's guardian while in Chrome's body. "

Mukuro," Tsuna said as Mukuro was trying to deflect the mass of Viper copies charging him. When he wasn't paying attention, that was when Viper covered him whole with his whole body like a black blanket. Fantasma encircled the black bubble that held Mukuro, and spikes appear around the edges of the snake as it snapped around the bubble for the death blow.

"Mukuro-sama," Ken called as everyone watched stunned at the action.

Viper's voice was heard, "impossible!" Just as he said that, a pacifier the only hint that it was him, his illusion was exploded from the inside by lotus flower vines and Mukuro standing there victorious.

"Decent into hell… then, return again," Mukuro stated. He held up the two rings in between his gloved hands, confirming he just has to make the ring whole to be considered the victor.

"Not so fast," exclaimed Viper. He reformed himself from mist, looking exhausted from the battle. "… I was just playing with you. Don't get so cocky!" Mist surrounded the small infant's body as it became solidified once more. "…I have yet to show you the full extent of my powers…!"

But it was Mukuro who echoed Viper's words to Chrome. "You know this very well, don't you?" He was standing sideways and looked down at Viper. "What it means when your illusionary powers are countered by another's." Fantasma wrapped around Viper's neck, and proceeded to squeeze on the infant's throat. "It means you have completely lost control over your own perceptions."

"Gyaah! Stop! Fantasma!" He was struggling to get his own pet to listen to him.

"Come, shall I show you what this thing we call power really is?" The debris of the floor began to float upwards. "Shall we?" Viper was in his weaken state, meaning he was back to being Mammon. A void opened up under Mammon, causing him to sink into it and everyone else seemed to believe they were falling. Mukuro was laughing as he descended down to follow Mammon, his eyes sadistic if not demonic. "How does it feel like? Arcobaleno!" He grinned with satisfaction. "This is my world!"

A black shadow slithered across the debris, shoving itself into Viper's mouth; expanding the infant to the point of bursting. If only Mukuro wasn't Viper's opponent, maybe he would have one. Mammon exploded, turning hardly into anything but mere particles of his former self.

Unaware to most, Mammon had enough power to escape, a thin trail of mist proving the Varia Mist Guardian was retreating to safety for the time being. Or he would have, if Mukuro, after ridiculing Tsuna for still being softhearted, told the rest Mammon had fled.

"That baby managed to escape," he explained. "From the start, he had every intention of reserving enough energy to escape… He's a shrewd one, that Acrobaleno."

"Gola Mosca," Xanxus said. "After the contest battles are over, eliminate Mammon." The silent Varia Cloud Guardian exhaled smoke, and Xanxus cruelty interested in him. Except, he wasn't going to poke his nose in his business. He did, however, give Xanxus a warning in his own words.

"The other candidate for the successor, though smaller and weaker than you… is not really someone you should trifle with, for your own good." Words from someone who was once defeated by the smaller, weaker, Vongola Sucessor candidate Tsunayoshi Sawada. Mukuro knew what he was saying, he knew that Tsuna may appeared weak and easy to beat… But from experience, Tsuna managed to surprised him and defeated him.

"You, girl," Mukuro said, looking at Maeko. "You weren't affected by the illusions?" He was surprised by this. Not many could stand there and watch without being affected on some scale. Of course, his words surprised Tsuna and his guardians. Most must have not noticed that Maeko was still very much calm and not reacting to the illusions.

"Your deceptive lies will not work on me." She kept her gaze firm on him. "Mammon's illusions never worked either, and he's top grade material when it comes to Varia Illusionist. You'll have to be very good at fooling me, the one who wields the sword who cuts down illusions and lies."

"Kufufu… Very interesting…" He smirked at hearing this. "Maybe I should take control of your body too." Gokudera reacted to this, knowing he was still aiming for Tsuna's body. Now he was going after Maeko's. Obviously if Maeko could see past Mukuro's illusions, she would indeed be a threat.

"Try if you want," Maeko challenged. She turned fully towards him, a hand on her hip and she has an open hand gesture to Kagami. "But you'll have to get by Kagami, she said she'd deal with you personally if you attempt taking on the Izumi family." She smiles at her. "Right?"

Kagami grinned. "Correct. Illusionist will have to pass me! I will make you weep like babies and send you packing back to the other cycle, thanks to the grace of Minoru." This bit of information shocked Tsuna, and he looked at Maeko. Could it be possible..? Maeko used Minoru on Kagami?

"So you are working for her? Wounds me that I didn't see this coming. You know you could have came to me anytime, submitting to me." Mukuro closed his eyes.

"Over my dead body," retorted Kagami. Her eyes were shooting murderous vibes towards Mukuro.

Maeko giggled, causing Kagami to look at her. _Someone's not being honest~_

"Maeko-sama! No! Don't you dare let that cross your mind! Not truth!" She was glaring at the Izumi head.

"The Lotus leads the way to truth, are you saying my thoughts are deceptive?"

"Very much!" Kagami wasn't going to let her think otherwise.

Mukuro sighed at what he was hearing. All this information, so little time to process and retort. "Mukuro…" He glanced over at Tsuna. "In any case… th-thank you" He was thanking him for battling on his behalf.

"I'm a little… tired now… This girl…" He falls forward, mist forming around his body as it shifted back to Chrome. Landing on the floor, she was in a deep sleep. Seemingly, Ken and Chikusa decided to leave her there. Not bothering with her now since they were only beside her because Mukuro could possess Chrome at times. If it wasn't for Mukuro presence behind Chrome, the two boys couldn't care less about the girl.

After the fight was over, the next match was announced. One where Xanxus was highly confident in Gola Mosca, to the point that he bet that if his guardian lost he'd give everything over. The cloud match was tomorrow.

"Hibari…" Maeko spoke softly, turning her head and looking towards the window. Hibari was out patrolling, and promised to be back to pick her up. She was glad he wasn't here, he would instantly want to fight once he set his eyes on his opponent. Unbeknownst to her, Hibari was getting a last moment checkup from Dino to access his strength.

"Maeko," said Xanxus, snapping her attention back towards him. "One final meeting in the morning." He smirked, sending a shiver down Tsuna's spine. He could sense something wrong. "Don't be late." Tsuna had a bad feeling about why Xanxus said that and the look in his eyes. A meeting in the morning before Hibari's match. Why would he do something like that? Certainly Maeko wasn't needed, but he couldn't shake this horrible feeling.

If Maeko went… he'd never see her again.

"Refuse Maeko," stated Reborn. He could tell Xanxus was plotting something.

"Hm?" Maeko looked over at Reborn, wondering why he would say that.

"Scared of something?" Bel was looking at Reborn. "It's just a meeting. Standard meeting she always do. We have information for her."

"If she doesn't," Levi added, "she wouldn't be doing her job as Izumi head."

Xanxus smug look was still there. "It's an informative meeting, I've found out some things for you, Maeko."

Maeko frowned at this statement, and sighed softly. The tension in the gym was getting thicker by the moment, and she could cut it with a knife if she had to. She understood Reborn's concerns but duty calls. "Fine, on one account."

Reborn shot a look at Maeko, wondering why she deliberately ignored his warning. He knew something was up the moment Xanxus stated it right here during the end of the match. It reeked of a set up.

"One account?" This caught Xanxus off guard, his gaze shifting from confident to wariness.

"If I come in, you have to tell me about _that_ as well_._" She gave a stern stare to Xanxus. "Everything, Xanxus. I will not allow you to cower from telling me it. I deserve the _truth_."

The moment she said that, he glared at her a moment before scoffing. "Whatever makes you happy, trash. If that's it, you have a deal." He stood up. "Tomorrow, sharp. Don't be late, trash. One of my men will give you the exact time." With that, he left with the rest of Varia.

"Lady Maeko," Basil said, looking at her. "Please don't do this! Thou knownth this is a trick!"

Gokudera agreed with Basil. "That guy's up to no good! Why are you insisting on meeting with him!?"

Kagami glanced at Maeko. "Boss-chan?" She saw something in the teen's eyes, and she slide a glare right over to Kagami. "Just wondering, not questioning your authority." She knew better than to piss Maeko off. She just wanted to confirm if she really wanted to do this despite an uproar of those against it.

"Don't worry about me," Maeko said, turning and started to walk off. "Kagami, I'll see you in the morning. Take care of Chrome, if you don't mind." She smiled.

"Maeko, we're not done talking," Reborn said sternly. He looked serious about keeping her from meeting with Xanxus. "You know what happened. Don't meet with him."

"Reborn-sensei, I respect you very much and I've listened to all your words and advice." She turned to look at him and gave him a glare. "However, you won't say a thing about _that_ either. If this meeting sheds light on that, then I will take it. He knows the risks of dealing with me." Her eyes seem to glow brighter and she closed her eyes. "Minoru will protect me. I know it."

"A sword isn't good protection! Take someone else! Hey!"

"Shut up baby," snapped Kagami. "Maeko is the head of the Izumi family. Let her do as she pleases."

Maeko sighed, walking out of the gymnasium without bothering to get a jacket. She understood why Reborn was worried. Worried what happened to her parents would happen to her as well. However, she believed Xanxus wouldn't kill her. He swore an oath to her grandmother to protect her if anything happened to Noriko Izumi. He may be shady, but she had this feeling that he wouldn't betray her trust to an extent.

On her way out, she turned to see someone waiting for her. Leaning against the fence was one of her subordinates. "Maeko-sama," the woman greeted. "Dino Chiavarone said he was doing a last moment evaluation of Hibari Kyoya, and apologizes this interferes with him picking you up." She gave an apologetic look. "I will escort you back, my lady. I sent another to go get the appointment time from Varia so we can prepare properly for it."

Maeko sighed at hearing this. "Fine… Just let me send Hibari something." Pulling out her cellphone and set a text to her boyfriend before heading home. A text that would make him feel very loved right now.

**|||###||| With Hbiari and Dino. |||###|||**

Hearing his cellphone go off, Hibari flipped it open to see what was causing the noise. "Phone call," inquired Dino.

Ignoring him, Hibari blinked at what was sent. In the picture text, Maeko giving him a peace-sign and holding Hibird in her right hand; she added the lyrics to Namimori's School Anthem in caption. But the very last part was what made the carnivore smile, she wished him luck biting Dino.

"No, just something cute you'd never get to see." He smirked as he looked at Dino. Drawing his tonfas, he prepared for his 'evaluation' to see if he could handle tomorrow night's match.

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**Terribly sorry it took **_**forever**_** to get out. =.= I tend to take longer when writing fight scenes due to me nit-picking how I express the details. Sorry, but I figure this would be a wonderful update and it's a long chapter! Kinda skipped out on most of Yamamoto's fight, at least the later parts. If I had the whole fight, this would make it even longer than it already is. I don't want to start dreading the later chapters of the future arch. Next is the night of the Cloud Match! Wonder if Maeko will appear. See you next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Welcome to the fifth chapter of Cute for my Cloud! *Curtsies* This chapter will be a little brief, in comparison to the last chapter, before the final battle. The day of the Cloud match as well as the night of the cloud match. Hopefully you all will enjoy this chapter as well as what I'm leading it up to! As always, enjoy this chapter! ^-^**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Early in the morning of the next day, Maeko snuck out of her family home due to many Chiavarone subordinates were outside waiting to blockade her from leaving the house. The teen sighed, using a side exit and headed out towards where Varia was staying. Seemingly Dino caught wind from Reborn what Xanxus said last night, and is going all out to bar her from meeting the dangerous Varia boss. Not that she would blame them, and she could understand their concern.

However, she had a meeting to go to.

Dressed in her school uniform, appearing as if she was heading to class she made a swift detour to head in the proper direction she was suppose to be. Unbeknownst to her, Chrome spotted her after she bumped into Tsuna this morning. "…Maeko Izumi…?" Chrome held a confused look about why she looked like a boy, but she recognized Maeko from a distance. Tsuna informed her that Maeko dressed like a boy at school despite her being a girl.

Maeko disappeared into the building that Varia was staying, grasping Minoru tightly as she was lead upstairs by the Varia subordinates. They halted when Bel was standing at the door, a grin on his face before he stepped aside. "This way, Maeko," Bel said.

She had to hide her feelings, walking into the nearly empty room and glanced around. She spotted a few chairs, and it wasn't overly furnished like she would figure it would. "Where is Xanxus—" Her words came to a halt as the sound of a gun being cocked was heard behind her. Something pressed against the back of her head and she stilled.

"Welcome trash," Xanxus said clearly. He was standing behind her, his gun pointed directly at her skull as if he was prepared to kill her. "Make things easy and cooperate with me."

Maeko turned her head, her brown eyes staring at him as he gave a smug smirk. "Cooperate?" She could feel the gun touch her temple, a shiver running down her spine when she realizes she was probably outdone. She wanted to believe him, believe he wouldn't be like how everyone else says he is.

She wanted to believe he had some good inside, even if it was buried…

Bel snickered, walking out from behind Xanxus as well as Levi. Gola Mosca could be heard behind the three, breathing heavily. "We have something… we need you for." He gave a sadistic grin. "Cooperate, Princess of Truth."

"I thought this was an information meeting, not a cooperating one." Maeko stared down Xanxus, keeping firm eye contact with the man who had a gun pointed at her. She didn't need him getting trigger happy and so she was trying to not push his buttons so soon.

"It's both." Xanxus eyes never changed, and he gave a smug look. "Now… Cooperate with me, trash. You're going to be the key."

Maeko was getting nervous, wondering what exactly he meant by 'key' in this sort of situation. "Key…?"

The smug look didn't change and it only made Maeko even more so nervous. Now she felt like nine sorts of idiots. She thought he wouldn't do anything, and yet he was proving that he was just as sinister as he led to believe. Proving that everyone else's concerns with her meeting with him were correct, he was up to no good. "You'll see what I mean." He gestured to Levi, and the thunder guardian came closer to her with ropes to bind her.

Maeko should have listened to Reborn about this…

**|||###||| Around the same time, in the hospital with Tsuna. |||###|||**

"Hm…" Tsuna was looking around while walking down the hallway. He was looking to see which room they might be in before a voice surprised him.

"Well, Romario?" It sounded like Dino on the other side of the door.

"There's no change… But, boss, in any case this is all we can do…"

"I know!" He sighed. "Just do something about it by the end of today…. No, by noon." Tsuna opened the door, thinking that Dino was talking business and seeming so busy, and caught the Chiavarone head by surprise. He turned his head sharply to the door. "Who is it!?"

"Er… it's me…" Tsuna was a bit nervous, seeing a machine gun in Romario's hands. "It-It's Sawada…"

"Oh…" Dino gritted his teeth before standing up and meeting Tsuna outside, closing the door firmly behind him. He grinned at Tsuna. "It's Tsuna! You're up early!"

"Good morning! Well, I couldn't sleep, so… Er…" He was relieved that the Dino in front of him was the same old one he came to know. For a moment there, it looked like a different person standing in that room talking to Romario.

Dino leaned in close and gave a stare to Tsuna. "You want to find out from me how Kyoya will fare tonight, right?" Earning a 'gii' of surprise from Tsuna because he wasn't expecting the blonde to be this sharp. "I'll make you some tea… Come in."

"Erm, you look busy…"

"I still have time to talk to my little brother." They headed down the hallway and Dino noticed something along the way. "Hn… Where's that Chrome girl… She disappeared."

"Ah… she just left," Tsuna explained.

"I see…" Dino glanced over at Tsuna, smiling a little. "You're worried that if Kyoya loses, it'll be all over." He stood before a doo. "As for these guys, they're either worried too, or they're bored." He opened the door to reveal a Gokudera, Ryohei, and Yamamoto all passed out asleep in various positions on the two couches in the waiting room. "They dropped by to ask about the same thing."

"Wha!" Tsuna looked earnestly shocked. "Gokudera-kun, and Yamamoto and Kyoko's brother!"

"They all came with excuses about checking on their injures and the like." Dino chuckled.

Tsuna smiled. "Everyone…"

"Now, they're all relieved and have fallen asleep."

"Eh… So… that means…."

Dino gave Tsuna a confident look. "Kyoya is a perfect finish. As his home tutor, and I'm saying this without any favoritism, that boy is really strong."

"I'm glad to hear that…" He sighed, all of the sudden feeling sleepy. He had spent all night dreaming of all various horrible things that could happen. Like Gola Mosca about to shoot Hibari like it had done to Lussuria, except in the face instead of his back.

"You have training to get to," Reborn cut in, surprising both Dino and Tsuna. "You must perfect the dying will zero point breakthrough technique by today."

"Re-reborn! Ninja," inquired Tsuna. Dino gave a stunned look, still recalling all the frights Reborn did to him when he was still his student. "Wait, what did you say!?" Tsuna looked at Reborn earnestly. "The battle today will be decide it all! There is no reason for me to train anymore, is there…"

"Precisely because it's the final battle. What will you do if something happens?" This surprised Tsuna at what he said. "Also, it appears Maeko slipped past your subordinates, Dino."

Dino froze at hearing this. "She what!?"

Reborn looked at Dino. "She managed to sneak past them, Chrome saw her heading somewhere but didn't follow. Kagami is also missing." Reborn gave a frown this. "If Maeko went to see Xanxus under the belief he wasn't going to do anything to her…."

Tsuna flinched at hearing this. "But… shouldn't she know why you all objected against it?" He was concerned about Maeko. Seeing her flatly telling Reborn that she wasn't going to listening what he said, he was half scared the baby hitman would do something to her. Yet, Reborn had to grit his teeth at what she did that night. He was more furious than he'd ever seen. Maybe even hurt…

Dino sighed. "She's still a kid… She wants to believe Xanxus wouldn't harm her because she's the Izumi head." He ran a hand through his hair. "She… God, Maeko…. Please…"

Tsuna looked at Dino, seeing that both him and Reborn looked very upset at hearing that Maeko did indeed disappear. "Wait," Tsuna said, realizing what Reborn had said about Kagami. "Could Kagami gone in her place? I mean…" He recalled what Kagami said to Mukuro last night. "She should be an illusionist. Could she fool Xanxus into thinking she's Maeko?"

Reborn grimace and shook his head. "No. Minoru wouldn't allow anyone but Maeko and a few selected to take it. Not only that, Xanxus would test to see if that was the real Minoru. The moment he found out it wasn't, he'd kill the imposter. Maeko wouldn't risk her subordinate's life on Xanxus. Too risky."

Dino nodded. "But for her to evade my subordinates before Kyoya's match… This doesn't bode well." He glanced away. "Leave the search of Maeko to me." Dino looked at Tsuna sternly. "I'll find her, you don't need to worry about it Tsuna." He smiled. "Maeko is important as family to me, just like a little sister… If Xanxus did something to her, I'd never forgive him."

"As family…?" Tsuna was a little confused.

Dino smiled and lifted up a wrist band. It looked like a horse was imprinted on it, and his smiled was very warm as if he recalled who gave it to him. "Yeah, she's just as sweet as her grandmother. This was the first thing she gave me when she was little. To be honest, it's a treasure because she thought it would cheer me up when I was a little blue." He closed his eyes, recalled when he looked like he didn't like it that Maeko was about to burst into tears.

To think, she grown up so quickly to the point that she almost looked like a grown woman. She still was naïve a bit, believing in those who shouldn't get that chance was beyond him. Maybe that was something her grandmother instills with her, or it was part of her father and mother's personalities that she inherited. Either way, he knew Maeko was like a cute little sister he's watched grow for so many years. He was proud of her, so proud of all she accomplished.

"Dino-san…" Tsuna could tell from the way he was looking that he took great care of that wrist band. _His treasure… Maeko…_ He sighed and nodded. "Alright, Dino-san, I'll trust you can find her." He smiled, tilting his head to the side and closed his eyes. "Hopefully she's just training again. She did that a few days ago."

Dino smiled, nodding and glanced at Reborn. "Leave finding Maeko to me." He paused from leaving and went to find Romario. "Romario… we'll have to keep Kyoya knowing about Maeko's disappearance."

Romario stared at Dino in surprise. "Boss…?"

Dino grimaced. "If he found out his girlfriend vanished before the night of his match, he'll start looking for her. He'll miss a match if it meant her safe return." He recalled asking Hibari that, getting a flat answer that stated the carnivore would not fight if that meant seeking out where his girlfriend was at. "Kyoya… He knows she's part of mafia. I've warned him she's got enemies and those who'll use her." Yet somehow, when he said that after the evaluation…

Hibari smirked at him with such arragonance. _"No matter who it is, or what they have against her. They lay a hand on her head, threaten to take her life…. I will bite them to death to prove that no one touches her."_ Hibari looked towards his phone and gave a genuine warm smile; one Dino figured he'd never see unless he was dating Maeko. _"She's a tough girl but even I want to protect the thing that's precious to me. So, if anyone gets any funny ideas of taking her out." _Hibari gave a sadistic smile. _"I'll be more than oblige to bite them to death and ensure she's alright."_

Dino was surprised at the capacity of Hibari's devotion, knowing the two probably recently started dating not too long ago. Then again, Maeko said the two constantly bumped into each other before and he assumed she was a boy. There was a slim chance that Hibari, on his off-time, went back and thought of each encounter to see if he missed any hints of her being a girl. If so, he must have realized that maybe each time he saw her before actually did hint to her being a girl. Or maybe Hibari just likes her the way she is, not too concerned that others may not see why he likes her so much.

Maeko will always be a tomboy who shows her cute side to Hibari alone.

**||| ### ||| Later in the evening with Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, and Aiko ||| ### |||**

The three guardians came in Tsuna's stead, and Gokudera finished saying just that when Aiko came to meet them. "Ah, Aiko," Ryohei said with a smile. He glanced around expecting Maeko to be not too far behind. "Where's Maeko? Shouldn't she be here to watch?"

Gokudera grimaced at Ryohei asking that. Tsuna informed him about where Maeko went, and he agreed wholeheartedly with the tenth. If Maeko visited Xanxus, the likelihood she would be there that night was slimmer than anything.

"Ah, Mae-chan is training." Aiko smiled at this and giggle. "She probably wants to train a little to catch up to how little she's been doing it the past few days, and I'm pretty certain she has a lot of faith that Hibari-san will be able to handle this fight without her."

Gokudera glanced at Aiko as if she was being a little deceptive."Aiko…" He had his hands in his pocket, and the small teen looked over at him. "Are you positive?"

Aiko smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck and giggled at his shocked look when she did it. "Goku-kun," she said, dropping her voice as she gave him a serious look. "Maeko is going to be fine, and she'll show up when she's needed."

Gokudera face turned red at hearing this, surprised she could pull off the serious look when she wanted to. "Bu-but!"

"No buts," Aiko said sternly. "Just say she's training and you won't have to get bitten." She slipped away from Gokudera and smiled at the other two. "Sorry~ Goku-kun keeps thinking I don't know where my best friend is." She giggled and bounced around. Gokudera had a shocked look on his face, feeling like he got deceived into thinking Aiko was the type to not be overly serious about anything. But to see her not act anything childish was a surprise, guess even she had a serious side.

"Ah, alright," Ryohei said, buying what she said.

"Well, here's the main star of today." Yamamoto looked over at Hibari came to the school.

Hibari looked at the four there. "Why have you all… gathered here?"

"What the, you—!" Gokudera looked agitated.

"Now, now… Well, we're…"

"Here to support you," exclaimed Ryohei, finishing for Yamaoto.

Hibari looked irritated. "You're an eye sore. If you're not gone in the next second, I'll kill you."

Ryohei looked pissed. "What the hell did you say!? You just pissed me off something fierce!"

Aiko sweat dropped at the boys antics. Boys will be boys…

"Now, now, let's all calm down." Yamamoto was trying to calm the whole group. "We're just coincidentally passing by, see? Don't mind us, Hibari. Okay?"

Hibari glanced over to see Aiko was the only one here and gave a puzzled look.

"Mae-chan is training. She had a meeting and decided to train afterwards instead." Aiko smiled at him. "She has the upmost faith in you, she seemed relaxed last I saw her."

Hibari smiled a little hearing this, and just at that same moment Gola Mosca dropped down. He was having a _very_ good day. Not only did his girlfriend, in her own way, believe in his assured victory. He also had a tough opponent to fight. "So… that's the one." He truned around, holding his tonfas as he looked at the man-machine before him. "All I have to do is bite you to death."

They were taken to a pre-arranged field of barbwire fences that surrounded the two and several Gatling guns in several corners.

"This is it…" Gokudera appeared to be amazed at the whole thing.

"What did you… do to the sports field!?" Ryohei was shocked.

"The mission of the cloud guardian is to be the aloof, drifting cloud who protects the family from an independent standpoint, and whom nothing can ever bind." A Cervello explained. "Therefore, we have prepared the most extreme filed for him." The field surround on all sides with barbed wire, as well as automatic batteries that will shoot at any mobile object it detects within a thirty mile radius. Furthermore, there are countless pressure-sensitive mines buried under the ground. Once activated, an alarm will sound followed by an immediately by an explosion.

"Isn't that totally a battlefield!?" Ryohei gritted his teeth.

"If you're scared, run away." Leve said, sitting on a rock nearby. "Just like your boss did." Bel snickered beside him.

"Up yours!" Gokudera glared at the two. "The boss didn't run away, asshole!"

Yamamoto pat Gokudera's shoulder, a smile on his face looking as calm as could be. "It's just, there's no need for Tsuna to be here just like why Maeko isn't here." He looked at the two Varia members with confidence. "Because, Hibari is our Ace, he won't lose."

This surprised the two Varia members, although Xanxus appeared to find this amusing to hear. He burst out laughing. "Bwahahaahaa! I'm definitely looking forward to this!" He looked over at Hibari. "Surprised Maeko chose this trash. Let's see if her predictions were right."

"_Hibari will defeat Gola Mosca."_

What an interesting prediction, even he laughed at her for saying that.

Hibari fell silent hearing this, wondering why Xanxus would know the details. The way he said 'chose this trash' did irritate him. It was almost as if the Varia boss knew the two were in a relationship.

"That crazy bastard," Gokudera said, not picking up the hidden meaning. Aiko fell quiet and grabbed hold of Gokudera's sleeve to catch his attention. "Wait… Aiko, it's not like that!" He was freaking out because she looked like she was going to cry.

"Mae-chan's predictions about people are always spot on…." She looked over directly at Xanxus. "Don't laugh at her descision!"

Gokudera was surprised she didn't tremble as Xanxus glared at her. But he could tell she was terrified, the knuckles of her hand gripping his sleeve was turning white. It was taking everything she had not to quiver in Xanxus's presence. _Aiko…_ He was surprised she managed to stand up to someone so terrifying. Maybe, just maybe, her faith and belief in Maeko was keeping her standing.

That bond of friendship was something he felt he lacked a little sometimes with the tenth.

Ryohei dragged everyone, aside from Hibari, into the circle rally and they did the 'Hibari Fight!' despite he was already in the battle arena. Aiko sighed a little, watching the boys starting to fuss about the specifics of why they did the rallying. "Thanks, I feel better."

Gokudera flinched, glancing at Aiko and not expecting that answer. "Err…."

"Oh!" Ryohei looked at Aiko. "Gave you a little boost didn't it! Psyche to see the fight!?"

"Mn!" She held both of her hands close to her face while saying this, smiling and glanced at Gokudera. "What?"

He turned his head. "No-nothing! If the boss were here, that's what he'd done anyways!" He gazed at Hibbari's back. _Don't you dare lose, Hibari… For the boss's sake!_

"Then, we shall begin," said a Cervello.

Scramble for the Cloud Ring has begun: Hibari Kyoya versus Gola Mosca!

Gola Mosca propelled itself towards Hibari, surprising everyone on the side lines.

Dino was watching the match from afar. "You know something Romario... Where Kyoya is concerned…" Romario asked earlier if he wanted to watch this match.

Gola Mosca lifted its' hand, shooting at Hibari who merely dodged it as a piece of his hair getting clipped.

"That Gola Mosca is apparently… Not even worth his time."

Hibari attacked in a blink of an eye, destroying an arm off the machine and causing the Varia cloud guardian to land on a mine that exploded. Hibari clicked the two rings together, shocking everyone at how quickly he disposed of the big tank like guardian. "I don't need this thing." He handed it over to a Cervello who was utterly speechless. "Now, you, the one sitting over there." This surprised the Varia members. "Come down here." Hibari gave a smirk. "Until I bite you to death, Moneky boss of the mountain of monkeys, I can't go home."

"What!"

"Don't just 'what' you octopus," chided Bel. "Or haven't you noticed? We lost…" Bel grimaced a little. "The ring contest battles. What now, boss?"

Xanxus glanced over at Gola Mosca before smirking, looking very confident. All of the sudden he leapt out of his seat, Xanxus's foot slammed into Hibari's tonfa which he blocked the attack, and was defelcted back until he landed on his feet. Gripping onto his coat, Xanxus looked over at Hibari. "My foot slipped."

"Right," Hibari retorted.

"No, really." An explosion set off and Xanxus jumped to the side. "I came down only to retrieve that piece of junk. We have lost."

"Hnnn." Hibari didn't appear to believe Xanxus's words. "Your face… tells a different story." Hbiari charged towards him, swinging his right arm backwards as he attempted to strike him. However, Xanxus was too quick, easily dodging the attack while smiling.

"What the heck is Hibari doing!?" Ryohei was surprised by this. "He'd already beaten that mechanical monster!"

The Gatling gun started to swivel, detecting something within range and began to blast at full capacity. All Xanxus did was dodge Hibari's assault all the amiss the bullets, explosions, and still grinning the whole time. "Don't worry. I won't raise an arm."

"As you wish," replied Hibari. "Anyway, I'm going to bite you to death."

"That brat!" Levi was furious, outrage at how Hibari was acting. "How dare he mock the boss!"

"Hold it, sulky-face," Bel said, earning a 'what!?' from Levi. "We've already lost the battle. If we get into the fight, it'll be seen as a mutiny against the incumbent tenth boss. They'll have our heads, along with the boss's."

"You're saying we should just let that impudent brat do as he pleases!?" Even Levi had some tolerance when it came to certain people. He drew the line when it came to Xanxus.

"Well, he seems to be scheming something, our boss." This surprised Levi upon hearing Bel say that. When inquiring what it was, Bel answered with a 'no idea.' He probably didn't know. "Mammon or Squalo would probably know that." And the two knew where those two were at.

However, Gola Mosca was looking directly over at the battle of Hibari. The machine's system was still online, and a targeting box started to flash on Hibari's back; unaware that the machine was about to do something. Xanxus was still being attacked by Hibari, forcing him to lift his hand to block an on-coming attack.

"You've… raised an arm?"

"That boy forced the boss's hand," exclaimed Levi.

"Unbelievable."

"Gah…!" Xanxus lowered his hand. "Cervello," Xanxus called as he was continuing to dodge. "Don't get the story wrong, now. I didn't attack him at all." This surprised the Cervellos that he was making this point clear. Although, it would appear that he was lifting it up to defend himself. If he did lift it up to attack, Hibari might have been in trouble if he knew of Xanxus's ability.

Just as Hibari was going to deal another blow, Xanxus has a sadistic look to his face. That's when something shot out, hitting Hibar's thigh and shocking the carnivore. The attack struck, causing him to bleed and missiles were fired and started hitting all over the battle field. This shocked all except for Xandus.

"I only came to retrieve my junk, but…" That's when it was shown that Gola Mosca was going berserk. "I've been obstructed by their cloud guardian all this while." He looked onto the machine. "Now Mosca's restraining system has been broken."

This shocked everyone there. Gola Mosca was shooting attacks everywhere. Compressed particle beams shooting into the nearby building, and missiles were launched all over the grounds. Chrome was trying to get away from the attack, while Xanxus was laughing at this 'terrible disaster' that was happening.

Aiko ducked behind Gokudera, shivering in fear and praying that Maeko came. _Mae-chan! Hurry!_ However, she had no idea that Maeko wouldn't be able to make it.

"That bastard," snapped Gokudera. "He didn't care about the fight from the start. He just wanted to kill everybody and make it look like an accident. That's why he kept provoking Hibari!" He gritted his teeth, realizing that it was also interesting that he provoked Hibari while Maeko wasn't within sight. Without a doubt, Maeko would have gotten in between the two and halted this whole fiasco.

Meaning her not being at the match was highly important.

Hibari gritted his teeth at knowing he was being used to such extend. Chrome had to keep running, almost getting hit until Chikusa and Ken knocked her down to avoid getting hit. However, that brought the attention of the berserk machine.

"This is bad," exclaimed Yamamoto.

"They're sandwiched!"

All three ducked their heads as both the Gatling gun and Gola Mosca attacked at once. However, blocking the attacks was a wall of orange flames, surprising everyone as Gola Mosca retargeted to see the hand blocking the attack.

"That flame…!" Xanxus wasn't expecting him to show.

Chrome looked up, the flames dying down to the hand of the one wielding it.

"…Boss."

Tsunayoshi Sawada made just in the nick of time.

**||| ### |||**

"That's…!"

"B-boss!" Gokudera was glad to see he arrived. Everyone else on Tsuna's side was glad he arrived just in the nick of time.

"Tsuna-kun," Aiko called. She smiled seeing him there. "Thank goodness…" She fell to her knees and let out a sigh of relief.

"So, you're here. But…" Xanxus had a smug look as Reborn and Basil ran into the scene.

Gola Mosca blasted a huge amount of rockets into the air, sending them pelting down at Tsuna who was standing still. "That maneuver can't be human. Has it gone berserk?" The baby hitman had no idea how correct he was.

"Eliminate everything, starting with that scum. That has not changed," ordered Xanxus.

Tsuna looked up, the fires on his hand bursting, propelling him upwards as he flew up and causing all the missiles to explode. This surprised everyone that Tsuna was able to fly. Increasing the amount of flames on his hands, Tsuna flew at an angel towards Gola Mosca. In a moment, Tsuna removed the other arm on the machine. Tsuna held the other arm as he stood up.

"Wha-what the hell did he do!? What the heck? What was that move!?"

Xanxus gazed at Tsuna, falling quiet and not daring to say anything. _"Don't underestimate Tsuna,"_ warned Maeko. _"He's tougher than you think."_ She had given him a confident stare at that time. _"That's why I'll back him up, just like my ancestor with Vongola Primo."_

"Hey, blockhead." Tsuna broke the arm effortlessly. "I am your opponent now." Gola Mosca turned around, targeting system inside was converting.

_OGETTO PERICOLOSO_. _Dangerous Object Identified_.

_CAMBIO BERSAGLIO_. _Target Changed_.

_Total Destruction Execute._

Gola Mosca fired more missiles, aiming at Tsuna once more. Tsuna dodged backwards from the attack.

"Sawada!"

Gokudera gritted his teeth. "All the shells are going for the boss!"

"Mosca has locked onto his target," stated Reborn.

The thing in the middle of Mosca's chest started glowing, firing a compressed beam at Tsuna who dodged it effortlessly as an explosion was set off from behind him. "That color…" Aiko held her hand to her mouth. The color of that beam, she didn't notice it at first because she was looking away. However, it looked eerily similar to the flames that both Tsuna and Maeko used; orange flames.

Tsuna did another burst of flames, ascending into the sky while glancing down at the multiple explosions that went off. However, Mosca jetted up to meet him. The cannon in the middle of the machines chest started to glow as it began drawing energy to attack.

"Boss!"

Tsuna balled up his left fist, slamming it into the chest of Mosca and sent the berserk machine flying to the ground.

"He's strong," exclaimed Ryohei.

"Yep," agreed Yamamoto.

"Way to go boss!"

Levi looked over at Xanxus. "B-boss!" What shocked him was seeing Xanxus's smug look. He wasn't even batting an eye at Tsuna pummeling Gola Mosca. And the truth behind it was being found out in Italy, Tsuna's father was finding out the harsh reality as to why. The truth behind Gola Mosca's power; it fed off the flames of a living human.

"As expected! That mechanical weapon is no match for Master Sawada."

"…But something doesn't feel right…" Reborn couldn't place it. "Mosca could have fought Hibari at full strength and won the whole contest. He would have thought of killing everybody too. But, why go through such a long and roundabout way?" He also was curious as to why this was done, along with the fact that Maeko wasn't around. "Could it be coincidence that this is happening while Maeko, an Izumi head and peace keeper, is gone?"

"Xanxus…" Tsuna turned his head towards the Vaira boss. "What is this all about—" He was cut off, Gola Mosca propelling itself towards Tsuna once more. Tsuna stopped the hulking machine with one of his hands. Using the other, he slice the top of the machine down the middle. Xanxus gave a sadistic grin, knowing just what Tsuna now unleashed. Falling out of the machine a white head was visible until the person attacked to all the wires fell out. A white haired old man fell out of the machine, a wound in his chest and an evident beard on his face.

It was the ninth Vongola boss…

**||| ### ||| Sometime later, after Varia left. ||| ### ||| **

Dino Chiavarone and his subordinates arrived, tending to all the injured and hauling the ninth Vongola boss away for medical treatment. Dino received word from the CEDEF team in Italy, and the damages were substantial.

"You Okay, Hibari?" Yamamoto looked over, surprised at the disciplinary committee's president not lashing out at everyone.

"How unusual for you to be so restrained," commented Gokudera.

"If this situation draws out that herbivore's true strength, I won't interfere yet."

Dino watched the interaction between Reborn and Tsuna. They haven't lost hope yet, and glanced over at Hibari. "Actually, there's something I need to discuss with you, Kyoya." This surprised the other guardians that were there. "It's in concerning to Maeko Izumi. She's missing, and there's a possibility that she was killed."

Everyone was shocked at hearing this. "Who did it!?" Gokudera was the first to ask.

"We're not certain. The Izumi family just received a note, stating Maeko is in 'no longer part of this world and will not assist Tsuna no more.' A clear meaning she's either dead or this is a bluff."

Aiko looked at Gokudera and then to Dino, tears welling up in her eyes. "You're lying! Mae-chan isn't dead!"

Dino grimaced. "She went to meet with Varia. There's a huge chance she is dead considering what Xanxus did to her parents during the Cradle affair." He looked away.

"What happened with her parents?" Gokudera looked over at Reborn. "What happened to Maeko's parents!?"

Tsuna glanced over at Gokudera when he yelled at Reborn. "Re-Reborn?"

"Xanxus killed Sakuya and Maeko's mother with his own bare hands… They were just keeping the oath between Vongola head and Izumi head…" Reborn gritted his teeth. "Dying for a Vongola boss so he can live another day…"

Tsuna flinched at what Reborn said, recalling the night of the Storm guardian battles Maeko said something to that effect. The last sentence of the oath, she'd exchange her life for his if his enemy was going to take it. "M-Maeko-san…" He now realized the gravity of what she said that time.

"That's…" Gokudera grimaced at hearing this. "That would mean…!"

"Mae-chan's parents… Her grandmother said they never regretted it." Aiko was the one speaking, surprising those there. "Out of all the Izumi family, there are ten who were selected by Minoru as true heads. Only two of twelve had to go through the dangerous ceremony of becoming a head."

"Dangerous c-ceremony…" Ryohei was looking at Aiko.

"It involves Minoru, from what Mae-chan said." Aiko looked at those around her. "Minoru, the sword, has killed multiple Izumi family members because of this ceremony. Certain Izumi heads could use this ceremony to reach perfection but it's risky."

Tsuna glances at Reborn. "Is… is this why you insisted Maeko to not go?"

"It is," answered Dino. "Xanxus took both of her parent's life with his own hands. I doubt Maeko is safe from him either." The Chiavarone tenth looked at Tsuna. "Maeko's mother wasn't a fighter, a timid woman who came along with her husband. If Xanxus could kill her without remorse, what makes you think Maeko is safe?"

The teens all fell silent, realizing the weight of what they just heard. Xanxus killed both of Maeko's parents, and possibly killed Maeko too. Tsuna gripped his hand and looked at Dino. "I believe in Maeko-san. She's not dead." He had this feeling she wasn't, he couldn't quite put words to the feeling. Deep within his heart, he knew she was alive…

Dino glanced over at Hibari, seeing that he wasn't exactly happy to hear this. "Kyoya?"

Hibari glanced at Dino, and walked off. Dino grimaced, sighing softly and followed after Hibari. All he needed was Hibari attempting to storm Varia's base to find Maeko. He'll try to explain it in more detail.

All he could do is pray that Maeko was safe.

**||| ### ||| Sometime later, Varia strong hold in Namimori. ||| ### |||**

Xanxus had returned later after his scheme was laid to best. Tsunayoshi Sawada dare say he was going to take back that ring. He grinned, everything worked so well. Even with Maeko gone, she would have interfered with the fight and possibly use Minoru on him to find the truth. A knocking on the door made Xanxus turn his head, and sees a woman standing there wearing a Varia uniform. However, he knew she was part of the Lotus group members that were associated with Izumi.

"Caprice…"

The blonde haired woman bowed at the waist, walking in and straightening up. "Boss," she said, looking at him flatly with grey eyes. "Is what I heard is true about the ninth?"

He almost grimaced at hearing her knowing about what happened with his father. He figured if she knew, she'd warn Maeko about it since the woman is loyal to Izumi. Caprice never fully told Xanxus why she wore the Lotsu insignia on her coat. The Lotus flower insignia on the lapel of their coats were those who were loyal to Izumi yet severed in Vongola. Caprice is the leader of the unit in Varia. "You don't have to worry about him. All is going according to the plan. What about the note?"

"Delivered and made certain that those in Bucking Bronco subordinates knew of it so he'd catch wind." Caprice turned her head, a worried look on her face. "Boss, are you certain about this?" She looked at him. "You'll be making everyone suspect the worst even though most here know what you're planning with Maeko." She walked closer to him and sighed. She looked conflicted about what he was doing and what she wanted to do from her heart.

Xanxus walked closer to her, grabbing a bit of her hair and glared at her. "You needn't worry about it. Just make sure the _key_ is well taken care of before released upon the _signal_. This is the only way to find the truth." He turned her head so he could stare into her eyes, knowing that he was pushing her to obey his command. This woman… Although she appeared calm, anything dealing with the Izumi family seemed to stir her viciously. She was aloof, doing her own things depending on her morals. If he dared think of trying to eliminate the current Izumi head, he'll be dealing with her. She'd come into his room, brandished with weapons, out to kill him for the betrayal he has done.

If he didn't have Gola Mosca made, she would have been a suitable Cloud Guardian.

Caprice didn't flinch at him doing this. "I will…" She closed her eyes, turning her head to kiss his hand. "I believe in you, Boss. I will follow you the end."

Xanxus pulled back and looked away. "You and her are too much alike…"

"Her and I…?" She held a confuse stare at him. "Do you refer to…?"

"The very same…" He glared at her. "Return to your task, and do _not_ fail me… like Squalo."

And with that, he walked off after grabbing the bottle of whiskey Maeko had given him that day before the storm ring battle. Along with the custom shot glass, he decided he'll drink a few shots tonight before heading to bed.

Tomorrow night will be the final battle with the trash Tsunayoshi Sawada. Everything he had been planning was going according the way he wanted. Yes, and tomorrow he'll get the needed truth.

All he had to do is wait.

* * *

**Thanks for reading this latest chapter! Hopefully this explains a little as to why Xanxus wouldn't kill Maeko, at least at the end part. I decided that most would know what happened with Tsuna and the Ninth, the details about the cradle affair. However, I won't be as cruel and will be having the next chapter up right with this one. That way the conclusion is right on the heels of this chapter and limited waiting! ^-^ See you next time~**


	6. Chapter 6

**Welcome to the sixth chapter of Cute for my Cloud! A Hibari x Oc story. *Curtsies* I'm the author, and I'm so glad you're enjoying this story. Now, this will be the conclusion of the Battle Royal, Sky Ring battle! This will be the one where you'll finally see where Maeko vanished as well as ****why.**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

"He regained consciousness once around noon, was annoying as ever apparently," informed Reborn. Tsuna and Reborn were in Lambo's hospital room. "But he still needs some peace and quiet."

Tsuna chuckled hearing this. "That's great… Lambo."

"Maman and the others will take turns watching over him so you can relax."

"Okay…" Tsuna sighed a little before looking at Reborn. "Erm… About… the ninth boss…"

"He's not here," instantly replied Reborn.

This shocked Tsuna who started to draw a horrible conclusion. "Then he… must be…"

"He's not dead yet," replied Reborn, almost knowing how Tsuna was thinking. Dino has moved him to a place with the best facilities- that's our last hope." Reborn appeared to be calm. "It's going to be touch and go." He hopped off the stool, and headed over to a small suitcase. "Anyways, a new weapon is ready for you."

"N-New weapon?" Tsuna turned to follow the baby hitman.

"Come over here." A small silver suitcase sat there on the table nearby. "It's a battle mafia suit. It's specially woven using fibers that are spun inside Leon's body. It can even withstand the heat of the dying will flames."

"Wait, if it's a mafia suit won't it look like Mafia!?" Tsuna's consistent concern.

"Don't worry," said Reborn. "It looks the same as your Nami high uniform. My suit is made of the same material, too."

Tsuna sighed with relief. "Ahh."

"Look, Leon is thoroughly worn out after making this for you."

"Th-thank you, Leon." Tsuna pet the little lizard's head affectionately.

"He made a bonus, too."

"Bonus…?"

Reborn had a little smile on his face. "Once you've changed into this, we'll have to get going to the final battle of the ring contest."

Tsuna looked at the half ring he had. "Yeah." He looked at Reborn. "Reborn... You said that the Izumi family and Vongola Primo had a good relationship when they first met."

"Very good to the point the first Izumi head dying at the hands of the second Vongola boss, or so it's claimed, to protect Vongola Primo." The surprised Tsuna hearing this; he wondered if it was true or not since it was claimed as if it was the truth. "Then the second head of the family persuaded the second Vongola boss to leave Primo to be." He smirked. "The power of a fem fatale is always amazing in the Mafia world."

Tsuna's jaw dropped. "The second Izumi head was a woman!" This shouldn't surprise him considering that Maeko was the current head, and her grandmother was the last head.

"Yes, her name is Maemi Izumi and she was the one who started the natural alliance between the two families." He smiled. "And as tradition, each Izumi head adapts their fighting style to that of the Vongola head."

"Tradition?"

Reborn smirked. "Aye, they must be on par with the Vongola boss to the point that they could combat back-to-back together. Even Noriko had a staff to use, just like ninth."

"But Maeko's father was…" He recalled that Maeko father went through a dangerous ceremony.

"Most true heads do this fighting style transition, those who ascend using the ceremony tend to keep their usual styles." Reborn looked at Tsuna. "The Izumi family always had a dying loyalty to Vongola. However… something is bothering me…"

"Eh?" Tsuna glanced at Reborn, seeing his tutor holding a puzzled look. "What is it?"

Reborn glanced at Tsuna. "The Izumi family tends to avoid becoming a part of internal conflicts of Vongola. So why did her parents defend the ninth when it was obviously an internal conflict inside Vongola famiglia?"

Tsuna blinked at hearing this bit of information. It did raise suspicions now as to why her parents defended the ninth. However, and much as he wanted to debate on his, he had to get ready. He had a ring battle to win against Xanxus.

The battle summons have begun…

**||| ### ||| In the streets with the rest of Tsuna's guardians ||| ### |||**

"Yo."

"Usu."

Ryohei, Yamamoto, and Gokudera met at the juncture of the street tonight.

"Let's go then…"

"Yeah…"

The three guardians started their way towards Namimori high, recovered enough from their battles and more than likely prepared for combat. "Everyone!" Basil was running towards them as he hurried along.

"You're not with Tsuna," inquired Yamamoto.

"No… I was getting in touch with my teammates in Italy…"

"How'd it go?"

"Not good…" Basil looked down. "Like Master Dino said, my master and the rest of the tam are still trapped inside the Vongola Headquarters."

"The prancing horse can't interfere either." Gokudera grimaced, knowing neither could the Izumi since this was their fight. "Whatever happens, we can't depend on anyone from help now…"

"What? Tsuna's going to win, you know." Yamamoto stated this while giving a huge grin, his hands laced behind the back of his head.

"Of course he is," snapped Gokudera. In the first place, no one else is fit to be the Vongola boss!"

This surprised Basil. "Well, I heard about it from master Dino." He looked down a little. "Before the Cradle affair… There seemed to have been five candidates, including Master Sawada, for the next Vongola boss." He looked at the Guardians. "Among them, there were three older men who were favoured because they had the abilities to be a boss more than anyone else. But, apart from the ninth boss and the consigliore, the family's upper echelons were all in support of Xanxus. The extent of Xanxus's disposition to be the boss was that overwhelming…"

"Then… what about the other three who were favored to be the tenth boss…?"

"They aren't even in the league," Basil said slowly.

"So," said Ryohei, closing his eyes.

"Yes, I see." Yamamoto smiled.

"Well, that's empty talk now." Gokudera was calm, earning a 'eh..?' from Basil. "Listen, newcomer." Gokudera looked over at Basil, a hand in his pocket and a cigarette in his mouth. "The tenth boss is a person so great he has surpassed greatness. Only those who understand him will get it."

Basil didn't quite understand. "Huh..?"

Yamamoto laughed. "Tsuna's not really that difficult to understand is he?"

"What," exclaimed Gokudera.

"I'm not sure what it is about his greatness…" Yamamoto smiled at the group. "Well, it's like, it's so obvious that it's easy to miss?"

"You're not making sense! You baseball nut!"

This surprised Yamamoto that Gokudera didn't understand what he meant.

"Well, in the beginning, there were times when I couldn't tell if Sawada was great or not," Ryohei said. "But, that's also because his ordinariness is simply not ordinary!"

"Huh!?" Gokudera seemed to be objecting to both perspectives of the other two. "Y-you people are rabbling rubbish!"

"Then, how would you put it," asked Yamamoto curiously.

"Yeah, I don't get it anymore," exclaimed Ryohei.

Basil didn't understand their explanations either. However, he could tell that these people could sense Tsuna's extraordinary ordinariness.

A bright light went off, right where the school was at that shocked them. They ran towards the school to see what the cause of it was. Smoke violently swirled around, Xanxus appearing at the center of it all.

"What happened!?"

"It's him…!"

"Our opponent looks ready, too." Reborn was there, his cap veiling his face. The guardians turned around, looking to see standing behind Reborn was Tsuna.

"Xanxus." Tsuna didn't flinch when he looked at the Varia boss.

"So you came, scumbage…"

The Cervellos appeared, starting to count the various guardians there. Certainly, one by one each side's guardians appeared. It appeared, in Levi's hand, that Mammon was caught in a cage. This included those who were sent to the hospital. Multiple Cervellos were there. Two held onto the stretcher of Lussuria, and one held Lambo in her arms with his oxygen tank at her side.

"Compulsory summons do not take anything else into account," explained a Cervello at Tsuna's outrage at seeing Lambo being there as well.

The sky battle was an all-out battle royal that involved the guardians and the Sky ring holders.

The Cervellos began explaining, even Lussuria said that it was the duty of a guardian to come when the summon was issued. However, this was a battle for the rings and their very lives were on the line. The guardian rings were taken and a wristband was given to all of them. All while the explanations was going on, two figures approached the battle area. Just as Tsuna group was planning to do a huddle, Tsuna noticed the two.

"Aiko-san!" Tsuna recognized her instantly.

"Hey Tsuna-kun," she greeted back. "We came to cheer you on!" She glanced to her side at the girl wearing a different school uniform. She had black hair, and what looked like a hime-style haircut. "Everyone, this is the Izumi representative for tonight. Mae-chan's aunty couldn't make it, so this is her daughter. Maemi Izumi."

Tsuna's jaw dropped hearing this. Didn't the second Izumi family's name was Maemi?

Maemi brushed her hair off her shoulders. "It's an honor to be in the presence of excellent quality bosses for Vongola. It's a terrible shame my good for nothing cousin, Maeko, is nowhere to be seen." She gave a stare at Tsuna, her black eyes seemingly arrogant. "Whoever wins is the strongest. Izumi will always support whoever wins."

Tsuna didn't like this girl one bit. She wasn't one bit like Maeko. "Why do you have the name Maemi?"

"That's Maemi-sama, to you peasant," she retorted. "And it's because my darling brother, Joben, gave me this name when my mother couldn't think of one." She smiled a little.

Tsuna inwardly winced, knowing from what Reborn said that Joben was someone he shouldn't trust. The same Joben who, in turn, was told wasn't allowed at any of the ring matches. "Maeko-san isn't a good for nothing!" Tsuna stood his ground. "She's a good friend of ours! She supported us in spirit despite her keeping neutral!" He clenched his fist. "I'm sure she has her reasons for not being here, so don't bad mouth her!"

Aiko smiled hearing this, giggling and looking at Maemi. "Be nice to Tsuna-kun, he could be the next Vongola boss and you're already bad mouthing him. You need to drop the act, seriously." She smiled and looked at the rest. "Sorry, she has that inflated ego due to her brother making her out to be a princess. She means well, but it comes out as insults."

Most gawked at hearing this, not expecting her to blush at Aiko's words. "N-not my fault. Brother always spoils me and Maeko never scolds me despite me calling her a worthless worm…"

"She… doesn't?" Gokudera was starting to wonder about Maeko if she let her cousin slip with those insults.

Tsuna tilted his head, recalling Maeko one time in class mentioned a cousin who was so shy they'd say the exact opposite of what they meant. "Is it because she knows you're so shy and can't properly say what's on your mind? So much, to the point you'll say the opposite of what you mean?"

Maemi turned redder and tossed a rock at him. "Si-Silence! I w-will not to-tolerate you saying s-such lies!"

_Hit it right on the head…_ Tsuna looked at her shocked; surprised he finally understood why Maeko was so linnet on her sometimes. Seemingly she can decipher what her cousin meant, even despite the words coming out of her mouth. This must be the 'act' Aiko was referring to. Acting high and might, like others were lower than her despite the fact she didn't want to truthfully be like that. Could her brother also be the cause of this too? Could Joben be the cause of this personality because he raised her to act like it?

"You…" Hibari looked over at Maemi, and she turned to see the carnivore giving a fierce glare. She hid behind Aiko who laughed at her not realizing that Hibari was Maeko's boyfriend. Hibari snorted. "Not worth my time biting…"

Tsuna gave a relieved look that Hibari wasn't going to bite the poor deluded girl. All she needed was a taste of Hibari's bite before this match.

"Okay, this is the only time we can do it then…" Ryohei brought his attention back towards the match.

"Eh?"

"Our circle rally, right?" Yamamoto smiled.

"Let's get all fired up!" Gokudera was feeling it.

Tsuna smiled. "Yes… let's do it!"

Ryohei gave nervous look over at Hibari and Chrome. "You guys can just stay where you are, okay?" He held his hand up, looking like he was terrified a little of either shooting his idea down. "We've revised it with the ten meter-rule, so you guys are in too!" Chrome gave a puzzled look. Ryohei gave a brief explanation to Tsuna, stating the rule allows anyone within the ten meters radius are also included in the circle rally. Obviously, Gokudera was shocked and didn't get Ryohei's meaning.

"Alright, let's do it!"

The four boys huddled up together. "Sawada Fight!" Aiko joined in despite she wasn't in the circle. "OH!"

Maemi gave a sheepish look at Aiko. "You're weird…"

"Okay, see you later." Gokudera walked off to his position.

"Be careful, boss," Chrome said departing.

"Good luck," Ryohei said over his shoulder as he went on his way.

Lambo was carried by a Cervello to his position.

"Don't be rash, okay?" Yamamoto gave a small smile.

Hibari started walking off, fuming at the whole thing.

_Guys…_ Tsuna smiled at their departing words of encouragement.

"Hibari-san," Aiko said, catching his attention before he fully left. "The kitten will turn you into a scratching post if you don't win." She grinned at him, knowing he'd get the meaning since she was all too aware of his cute little nickname for her best friend.

He blinked at first before it turned into a smirk. "Understood." He turned back around and headed towards his position.

"Kitten…?" Maemi looked at Aiko.

"He understood what I meant." She looked at Maemi. "Just like if I told you, the mirror shall return here later once everything is done."

The teen blinked at this, knowing just who she was referring to. Kagami Nishi was going to be coming later. Maemi sighed, only two years younger than both Maeko and Aiko. She was always jealous of the two's friendship throughout the years. Now, she could see why she had a pang of jealousy to her cousin. That bond… Even she got a little jealous when seeing Tsuna's guardians spoke to him.

"This is it, eh?" Tsnau turned to see Shamal and Colonnello appeared. "I'm here to collect your ashes," said Shamal.

"I just came to jeer." Colonenello said, his bird holding him up.

_So mean!_

"Looks like everyone has arrived at their battlefields," said a Cervello. In each battle arena for the guardians, there was a huge pole with a dish at the top where the completed guardian ring for each guardian respectfully was at. It seemed like all were going to battle, until the Cervello spoke again. "You are all free to do so. That is… if you are able to."

The moment she spoke that, a sharp prick was felt by each guardian. The needle injected a potent and powerful poison into their bloodstream. "Just then, all the guardians were injected with a poison and it was administered from their wristbands."

"No way…" Maemi gripped onto Aiko's sleeve. "Maeko wouldn't allow such a thing!"

"Maeko Izumi is not authorized to make comments about how the battle scramble is done," commented the Cervello. "Izumi members are spectators in this internal conflict. Maeko Izumi knew this well and never once objected even if her moral demanded it."

Xanxus gave a smug look. "I thought you considered her a worm?"

Maemi looked at Xnaxus. "She… she's not." She looked away. "Maeko… Maeko…" She fell quiet, unable to express how she truly felt about her cousin. Her persona she showed earlier was crumbling fast, and she had little confidence.

"_Maemi,"_ Maeko said with a smile before she headed out yesterday. _"If something happened and I cannot make it to the final match, take my place. I trust you to represent me."_ She had a look of confidence while gazing at her. _"Joben may not have my trust, but I know you understand me too. Aunty Sakura made certain we, the girls of the family, weren't so obtuse with the desire of power."_ She smiled once more. _"After all, we were raised as sisters, weren't we? If I'm not around for the final match, go see why I have faith in Tsuna Sawada. You'll understand once you see him battle."_

She swallowed and looked at Xanxus. "Maeko trusts me…" She stood with her back straight and balled up her fist. "I know she wouldn't agree with this!"

The sounds of the guardians were heard, a various chorus of their grunts of pain as the poison took effect. "The poison is call the Death Hitter. Once administered, it will paralyze the victims' nerves instantly. Even stand up will prove difficult." The Cervello explained calmly. "Then, a burning pain will spread throughout the body, increasing gradually, until thirty minutes later… The victim will die."

"It's suppose to be the sky battle, so why is everyone is involved like this!?" Tsuna wanted answers.

"Because the sky is the mission of the boss," explained a Cervello. "The sun, lightning, storm, rain, mist, and cloud. He influences all of them. He understands and accepts all of them. That is the Sky's mission." She looked directly over at Tsuna. "In this battle, the lives of all the guardians are entrusted in the hands of the boss. That is the sky battle." She explains that once inserting the matching rings into each guardian's wristband would stop the progression of the poison: an antidote. The goal of this scramble tonight was to get _all_ Vongola rings. After they finished explaining, Tsuna strapped on the chain they gave him.

He was in a rush. He had to save everyone before thirty minutes is up.

Just as he finished putting it on, Xanxus blitz at him, and delivered a harsh left hook that sent the teen flying into a wall. He convinced the Cervellos that this was what Tsuna wanted, to quickly start the match so everyone didn't die. One Cervello wasn't all certain about it, considering it was considered a foul move.

"Did I get him before he got shot with his special bullet?" The mocking question from the Varia boss was looking to see if he did indeed hit Tsuna before it happened.

"How foolish." Reborn smirked, his gun smoking in his hand. "Who do you think you're dealing with?" Xanxus was surprised, looking at the rubble as another explosion happened. Standing up from the rubble was Tsuna.

"Master Sawada!"

"Tsuna, Xanxus is not an opponent you can fight half-heartedly. If you're thinking about saving your six guardians first, you're going to lose your life. First—"

"I know," Tsuna said, cutting his tutor off. "I'm going to put this guy away first." The dying will fire lit on his forehead and his hands.

"You're going to put me away?" Xanxus still had a smug look, "with that level of power from last night?"

"Do I look the same as I did last night," Tsuna challenged. Xanxus glared at his words. Before the two completely combated, everyone was gathered in a box with infra-red sensors.

The battle of the Sky Ring beings: Tsunayoshi Sawada Versus Xanxus!

**||| ### |||**

Tsuna moved his opened left hand over his clenched fist of his right hand.

"Just as I thought, it looks like nothing has changed," Xanxus replied.

His right hand was facing skywards as it looked like how he'd hold a goblet in his hand; the same way when he was about to create a ball of destructive flames. Tsuna moved fast, exceeding his speed and swiftly appearing at Xanxus' left side. The swipe at Xanxus was dodged, turning around and countering with his left elbow that Tsuna caught with right hand. The battle was fast; Xanxus pulling his elbow back to turn around and kick Tsuna in the abdomen. This sent Tsuna flying into the building again, dust flying to obscure the vision of those watching.

"Master Sawada," Basil shouted.

"Well, well, that's some speed." Shamal was observant.

"Is that it," Xanxus inquired as he moved towards Tsuna. A flamed hand touched the ground, and Tsuna propelled forward to hit Xanxus. Of course the Varia boss caught this punch by the wrist, looking at Tsuna with a little bit of surprise. "You heard me; you're already dead." Xanxus said this flatly, his other hand lifting up and clenching as it started to glow.

"This guy is trouble," commented Reborn.

Tsuna looked shocked as the light from Xanxus's hand intensified, using his other hand to shoot off more flames to maneuver out of the blast Xanxus expelled. The school building in the path of the flames got hit, a huge hole appearing as black smoke expelled out of crevices.

"Oi… That's reinforced concrete on the building…" Shamal was sweating a little.

"It disintegrated…"

"It's the flames of Wrath," stated Reborn.

Maemi flinched at hearing this. The only documentation of the Flames of Wrath belong to the Second Vongola boss, and the second Izumi head detailed documents about it's power. And a warning, a warning to never get into a combat with someone with these flames unless they knew ways of avoiding pure cremation of themselves.

Xanxus laughed, elbowing Tsuna once more from his position and Tsuna blocked with his free hand. Tsuna moved swiftly up the side of a building, kneeling down and one hand on the surface as he gazed down at Xanxus.

"Flames of Wrath," asked Basil, uncertain of what that was.

Reborn explained in details. Dying will flames were like fingerprints or voiceprint. Each was unique to each individual, differing in both form and nature. "Xanxus's shining-ball flame is exceedingly rare. Among the past Vongola bosses, the only one who fought bare-handed without a weapon, was the second boss, because of this flame."

"Ricardo Vongola," Maemi said. "This flame is specialized with a characteristic of extreme destructive power which can reduce anything to ashes. From what is known, this flame was only seen when he was enrage, hence the name Flames of Wrath."

Reborn glanced at Maemi. "Your ancestor documented this?"

She nodded. "Maemi Izumi, the one I'm named after, documented much of this in case another was to appear." She could gain access to some of these top secret documents because Maeko allowed her to do so. Unlike her brother, Maemi had a bond with Maeko that allowed the two to share the Izumi family secrets without concern. Her mother made it possible, showing Maemi that her father's way of thinking was wrong and she thought her brother was way better than him.

"Do you know why the first boss, who uses the same gloves weapon as you, ran away to Japan and retired here?" Xanxus looked up at Tsuna. "That's because he feared a battle with the second boss, the man who killed the first Izumi head in battle." This surprised everyone. "And Maemi Izumi, the second head of the family barely managed to get an alliance with him. The two fought for hours before he agreed."

Maemi flinched at this, knowing that the documentation stated differently yet wasn't going to say anything.

"If the flame of wrath had crushed the weakly dying will flame, it would disgrace his name of being the strongest.' Xanxus clenched his hand. "He was afraid of this flame."

Tsuna stood up on the side of the building, holding his left hand out. "Would you like to try it out?" This surprised Xanxus. "Your flame and my flame, shall we see which is the stronger?"

"What?"

"Master Sawada!" Basil was shocked at hearing this. "What are you planning…?"

"A test…" Basil glanced at Maemi. "If Vongola Primo's flames are weak, so would Tsuna's since Xanxus has the same flames as Vongola Secondo. Testing them will show which was stronger."

Tsuna descended downwards, the flames on his hands bursting as he flew at full speed down at Xanxus.

Colonnello sweated a little. "He's serious!?"

Xanxus laughed at this. "Just how much of a scum can you be!" He became eerily calm, glaring at Tsuna as he came towards him, his hand glowing once more. "You really want to die that badly?"

Tsuna pulled back his right hand and sent his hand straight towards Xanxus.

"Then, die!"

The clash of the two hands caused a ripple at first before an explosion from the combine powers striking one another. The Cervellos were blown back, and everyone in the box were shaken at the force behind the blast. However, it was only Reborn who managed to see what happened.

Tsuna was the one who punched Xanxus, sending him flying in the direction of the building right behind him. Landing on his feet, his hand planted on the ground as he gazed in the direction of Xanxus, flames swirling around him from the aftermath of the collision.

"O..Oooh. The kid…" Shamal brushed the dust off his coat.

Basil was surprised. "Master Sawada's flame has overpowered… Xanxus's flame!"

Reborn smirked. "That's the result of his training." The overall destructive power of Xanxus flame is probably stronger than Tsuna's; however, Tsuna was able to control his flame concentrating it into a single point so he could break through Xanxus's flame. "But, Xanxus won't be defeated by something like that."

A glow from the rumble signaled that Xanxus was more than likely going to counter attack. Tsuna shot forward, charging at full speed to take on Xanxus. That was before he saw something that he didn't have time to dodge. A blast of wrath flames shot out from the rubble, hitting him to the point it penetrated the flame shield he had placed over him when he charged. Another blast of flames was shot out, someone being propelled upwards until they landed behind Tsuna. Tsuna glanced behind him to see a familiar shape.

"I didn't want to pull out a weapon like you scum…" Held in Xanxus's hands was a gun with an 'X' on it. He turned around, showing in both of his hands he was wielding two guns.

"So, Xanxus uses a weapon too. Worse, it's the same type as the seventh boss." Reborn grimaced a little. "The second boss's flame and the seventh boss's gun… This is a terribly vicious combination."

The dust cleared a little more around Xanxus, Tsuna stood up and faced him and he awaited Xanxus's next move.

"It-It's a gun!?" Basil was shocked at this.

"The Vongola bosses have all sorts of fighting styles, but the only one who used a gun as his main weapon was the seventh boss," explained Reborn. "It was said that the seventh boss was not only a skilled marksman, but the characteristics of his flames also led to his choice in using a gun."

Colonnello looked at Reborn. "What kind of characteristic was his flame?"

"In the history of Vongola, the seventh boss's flame was the weakest by far. That's why he used that weapon to compensate for it." Reborn dug around in his pocket. "Most likely, Xanxus's gun cartridges also…" He pulled out a dying will bullet. "Contains bullets similar to this."

"The dying will bullet!?"

"The seventh boss improved it for battle use. Look at that guy's hand." Just as Reborn said that, Xanxus's gun started glowing as it started to absorb his flames.

"The flame is being absorbed?" Shamal looked at the hands of Xanxus.

"That's right," continued Reborn. "The dying will bullet has a property that can temporarily compress the dying will flame. The seventh boss noticed this too. Even if the dying will flames are weak, they can be accumulated in the bullet, and then released in one shot. Resulting power is immeasurable." He appeared calm. "Actually, the destructive power of the seventh boss's gun was tremendous. It was said he used that gun to kill off many of his enemies. So much so, that in terms of their attack powers among the middle bosses, the seventh boss was the most famous."

Basil seemed to catch onto what Reborn was saying. "Wait a minute, Xanxus's flame is not the same as the seventh boss's. His is the flame of wrath that has by far, the strongest destructive power. If such a flame were to accumulate then be released in one shot…"

"Yes, it would contain an unbelievable destructive and penetrating power," replied Reborn. "If Tsuna were to get hit by that one shot, it would be very dangerous, even for him."

Xanxus had a smug look. "Aah? Didn't you say you were going to put me out right away? Or has your hyper intuition foreseen your own death?" Tsuna remained silent, charging ahead and leaving behind two bursts of sky flames in his wake. "Little bug. Don't think you have a patent on moving at super speed!" Xanxus pointed his guns downwards.

Tsuna swung his left fist just as Xanxus blasted off with his guns skywards. Landing on one hand, Tsuna used his flames again to swirl around the pillar of flames of wrath to attack Xanxus once again. He was going to strike with a chop, however, Xanxus out maneuvered him by blasting another shot to escape the hit.

"He used the bullets for his propulsion force, which has also increased his speed dramatically." Colonnello was watching intently.

"What a guy," said Reborn. "Not even the second boss nor the seventh boss could perform that move." It sounded a little like praise, but who couldn't when watching a spectacle like this? Even if Xanxus was the enemy, he was preforming excellent and proving why he was Varia material.

Behind Tsuna, a light started to glow and he turned to see Xanxus behind him with his gun pointed directly at him. "Scatter into dust." Tsuna used his flames to avoid the hit, taking some damage. Due to Tsuna taking the hit and not avoiding, the hit didn't do anything to Chrome. The blast broke the roof of the gym, and it would seem that Mammon was shocked that Xanxus was trying to almost hit him given the trajectory of the blast.

Both Xanxus and Tsuna landed on the same building, Tsuna landed above Xanxus and both stood up at the same time.

"You were babbling about it. About not letting any of your guardians die," he said. Xanxus looked at Tsuna. "What will you gain from that." This question puzzled Tsuna. "I don't care if my subordinates die. Look." As he said that, each of Xanxus's guardians were pleading for him to help them. Swearing an oath to him, despite his cruelty they were loyal to the end. Laughing, Xanxus shot up and moved higher in the air. "This is what the Sky is all about!" Charging his two guns, he fired off two shots. "This is charity!"

One shot hit the Lightning guardian pole, and the other hit the pole for the storm guardian. The rings fell down from the dishes, bouncing over to Levi and Bel who gladly took it. Xanxus seems to think that Tsuna should just throw his gloves around to do the same, and the rest were calling fowl.

"I'll just leave the bomber boy to writhe in agony and die from the poison…" Bel took his crutch and jumped out the hole Xanxus made onto the ground below.

"First, I'll kill the little cow brat," said Levi getting up.

"No!" Aiko paled at hearing this. "Mae-chan… Mae-chan said she warned that guy to leave Lambo alone!"

Maemi grimaced. "To leave Lambo alone _outside of battle_, however, this is in the middle of a battle conflict where she has no rules or authority…."

Basil must have drawn the conclusion. "Lady Maeko will be unable to enforce her ruling!"

Tsuna landed onto the roof building, crouched and looking directly over at Xanxus in a grimace. "Ahh? Where are you going?" Xanxus was already there and pointed his gun at Tsuna. He managed to block Tsuna from assisting his Guardians.

"Tsuna what are you impatient about," inquired Reborn.

"Mr. Reborn? Basil looked at him.

"Reborn-sensei…" Maemi looked at him, clutching her hands to her chest.

"Xnaxus certainly an unconventional man. But, your own guardians are not ordinary guys either," he said. A reminder that seemed to hit home with Aiko.

"You can't mean…!" Basil and Shamal looked at her as she turned her attention back to the battlefield.

Bel landed on the ground, and was looking to find out where Yamamoto was at. Just as he was going to leave, something attacked his right side while he wasn't looking. Because how he blocked, the ring he had flew up and into the smoke where Gokudera was at. "You are.."

"Hnnn. You dodged that pretty well." Standing before Bel, his armband obviously pinned to the sleeve of his shirt, was none other than Hibari Kyoya. "You are… the so-called genius?" Somehow, some way, the Cloud Guardian of Tsuna's was standing in front of the Storm Guardian of Vaira.

This shocked everyone, and that's when they panned over to the Cloud Guardian pole to see it had been completely knocked down. Reborn offered an answer: Hibari struck it down.

"I-Impossible… The Death Hitter's Poison is so lethal that even a wild elephant would stop in it's tracks…"

"But Hibari-san's personality," Aiko said slowly.

Reborn smirked. "Exactly the point, Aiko. It's the persistent power of a guy who hates being restricted. That's why he is… The aloof cloud who protects the family from an independent standpoint and whom nothing can ever bind!"

Aiko frowned at that. "Yea… Mae-chan said she'd be scared if he was tethered down against his own will… It's like tethering down a wild animal who will kill whoever did chain them." She grimaced in recalling her best friend was dating this guy. _Mae-chan… you're amazing if you manage to get this guy to marry you later in life without him thinking you're binding him…_

"Also, the true guardians are not just about their missions. Their relationships also resemble the weather they're named after." Because when it's cloudy, there will be a chance of the remaining weather conditions. "For example, it could be accompanied by a storm."

While this was going on, Levi was trying to find Lambo through the smoke on the battlefield. He manages to spot Lambo in the distance, and somehow his oxygen mask was knocked off. Levi charged at the vulnerable child. "I'm going to turn you into beef patties! Together with that annoying ability!"

"Hold it right there."

Something propelled at Levi's back, causing an explosion that he barely managed to doge. When Levi turned around, shocked, and looked through the smoke to see who attacked him. "Wh-what was that…?"

Standing there, smoking a cigarette in his mouth was none other than Gokudera Hayato who was holding his signature bombs in his hands. On his middle finger was the Storm Guardian ring.

"Didn't I tell you? Clouds and Storms go hand-in-hand," said Reborn.

That's when Basil realized. "That's right! Master Hibari flipped the storm ring up to Master Gokudera's location!"

Hibari gazed un-daunting to Bel. "Shall we begin, little Genius?"

Gokudera stared down Levi. "I won't allow you to cause all this extra noise during the sky battle."

"Fu, such annoying scumbags, overestimating yourselves," said Xanxus.

"Oi." Tsuna clenched his hand, his flames burning brighter than ever and surprised Xanxus. "Concentrate on your battle with me.

**||| ### ||| In an unknown location… ||| ### |||**

Hands bound in chains above her head, a blindfold covering her eyes did not limit Maeko from knowing she was still in one location. She was still in Varia's suite, in a room that cleverly made certain no one would distinguish someone was there. Locked in a closet, she kept herself quiet while hearing the few Varia members talking. Most weren't aware that she was there, until she heard the door opened.

"Wha-! Why is she—" A hand grabbed Maeko's shoulder, and she felt a gun muzzled pressed against forehead. "Answer me!? Why are you here?"

Maeko turned her head and smiled. "You best put that way… The aloof Lotus is lurking here, and you'll send her into a vicious tangent not even your boss can calm…"

He made a noise, tossing her back and she smiled. "Bitch, you're—"

His words were cut off, something striking the back of this member's neck and a thump of his body falling to the ground confirmed that he was knocked out. "No worries, I'll deliver you perfectly…"

"Caprice…"

The blonde Varia member sighs. "It's too soon. Not yet the time." She paused as if she was "The time isn't here yet. I haven't gotten the _signal_…"

"_The signal_?"

Caprice moved closer to her, adjusting Maeko's body so she was more comfortable. "No worries. When that time comes… I'll deliver you, the key, perfectly." She sighs softly. "Although…You should know how to use _that_, correct?"

"_That_? You're referring to the thing I've been _training to do_, correct?"

"Correct…. You can use _that_, then," said Caprice. "To deal the final, decisive blow…"

Maeko fell silent, wondering just what in the word Xanxus was planning. Deliver the final decisive blow to what? What was he expecting of her since tonight was the final battle between him and Tsuna. He couldn't expect her to defeat Tsuna, surely…

Xanxus must have a different plan for her, one that she'd be willing to fight someone.

A certain someone who she normally couldn't fight without a valid reason…

**||| ### ||| Back at Namimori High, up on the roof with Levi and Gokudera. ||| ### |||**

Levi grimaced at seeing Gokudera standing in his way. "You! You're the storm bomber boy! Get out of my way or I'm going to kill you."

Gokudera remained calm, his cigarette smoke drifted in the wind. "Hmpf. There's not a thunder cloud in sight. How are you going to kill me?" He took close look at the scenario when he fought Lambo, knowing that his umbrellas didn't work unless thunder was in the sky. "You're not that scary without that electric umbrella technique, are you?"

This was surprising to hear to Levi, a smirk gracing his face as he clenched his hand. The reason why he wanted to kill Lambo was because of his ability to not be affected by electricity. Lambo's clothes was highly insulated, and protected the child from the dangers of electrocution.

"Fufu… I see. You are mistaken, fool." Gokudera still had a clam look, awaiting Levi's explanation. "If my technique could only be used on rainy days, you think I'd be a core member of Varia!? My Levi Volta is an all-weathered technique!" Levi's parabolas shout out from his back, preparing for an attack.

"That's what I thought," said Gokudera, shocking Levi. "I've been waiting for this…" He lit his bombs with the embers of his cigarette. "The moment when all of your electric umbrellas are opened!" Tossing his bombs away, the bombs snick and sent a secondary flight pattern that shot all of them into the open umbrellas and destroyed each one of them upon contact.

"My-My parabolas!"

"Not bad Gokudera." Reborn was giving him praise.

"Amazing! They're all a direct hits," exclaimed Basil.

"Compared to paper planes, those umbrellas might just as well be standing still," said Shamal.

Chikusa pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, sighing a little.

"Go Goku-kun! Knock that suck-up!" Aiko was looking at where Gokudera was.

Gokudera began lighting up the next set of his bombs. "I don't have time to play with you at leisure. Eat this!" Tossing his bombs once more, watching them change direction and propel themselves towards Levi as they explode.

"So… That's the raging storm who's constantly on the attack around the nucleus, never taking a break." Shamal finally understood after seeing his own student complete this task right at this moment.

"Ah! But," Basil said, worried. "Master Lambo is there too!"

"Lambo-chan!" Aiko looked at Maemi before Reborn spoke.

"Don't worry. Gokudera hasn't forgotten. Speaking in terms of weather, Storms and Lightning are like brothers."

In the midst of the smoke, Gokudera managed to get to Lambo and replaced his oxygen mask back onto him. "Hang in there, stupid cow," Gokudera said. "The lightning ring… belongs to you." He used the ring he took off Levi and pressed it into the wristband to deliver the antidote. Firmly having the oxygen mask on Lambo, relaxed more and Gokudera looked up to the sky where Tsuna was. He had to hurry rescuing the others while Sky match went on.

Swirling in the air, Tsuna and Xanxus were circling one another and clashing; guns meeting gloves in the crossing.

"I'm not going to let the boss worry about the guardians himself! That's my job," exclaimed Gokudera as he hurried off. Cradle in his arms, Lambo was and Gokudera carried his oxygen tank as he went to go get the other guardians. He had to ensure that Tsuna wasn't distracted by the fact that his guardians were in danger, as his self-proclaimed right hand man. He had to do this!

**||| ### |||**

Shifting over to Bel and Hibari, and the battle between those two was going to begin.

"Oh, I know you too. You're Ace, right?" Bel looked at Hibari with smug smile, assured his answer was correct.

Hibari just returned the smile, correcting the storm guardian. "Wrong. You didn't even get one syllable right." Although Bel should have said 'ace in the hole' instead of Ace; who would think the carnivorous skylark would be named Ace?

This made the fallen prince giggle, the wind blowing his coat as he looked at his opponent in glee. "What a weird fellow… but somehow," Bel pulled out his knives and began to make the swirl around him. "I think I'm going to enjoy this." The knives danced around Bel like they had before, hinting that he was still using the same technique as he was before.

"His knives are floating in midair," Basil inquired, surprised that they could do that as well.

"He's using his knives and wires for that too," inquired Shaml.

Hibari wasn't paying much heed to them, a smirk playing on his lips as he watched amused at Bel's knives. He raised his tonfa as he gazed at his newest prey to play with. "Hmn. You do acrobatics too? Shall I give you a handicap on account of your leg injury?" Hibari seemed to be poking fun at the assassin's injury.

That only made Bel grin wide at the carnivore. "No need. After all, you're dragging your legs too... aren't you?"

And the two charged at one another, Bel unleashed his first wave of knives that surrounded him, several towards Hibari. "There's no point in attacking with so many," Hibari coolly commented. The disciplinary president wasn't as easily fooled, knocking the knives away with his tonfas as all of them stuck into the wall nearby. That was, until a smirk graced Bel's face and a deep slice was dealt to the right side of Hibari's face surprising him.

"Those cuts," exclaimed Basil, "they must be the wires!"

Even Shamal was catching on to a huge possibility. "This guy doesn't know Belphegor uses wires and knives does he?"

"Doubtfully," Maemi said, looking at Shamal. "I'm pretty certain he doesn't, otherwise, he would have been cautious about the knives flying around and at him."

Aiko grimaced. "It's like he's ensnared in vicious web of razor sharp, the webbing itself can easily slice him apart if he's not careful…"

Bel sent another wave, tossing both his arms at the same time so they crossed. More knives stuck into the wall, and Hibari was dodging them. However, everyone could tell that Hibari didn't know that Bel dwelled in wires and knives; meaning the more he tossed, the more Hibari struggled, and the more times carnivore got hit with the secondary blade the wires became.

A tonfa fell, and Hibari soon fell to the ground due to his injuries. Blood dripped down Hibari's wounds, down to his wrist and hands and it appeared he was defeated since he became immobile and his tonfas at his side.

"Master Hibari," exclaimed Basil.

Bel snickered, walking towards the wounded cloud guardian. "Hehehe, and the genius wins~. Then again, I don't lose do I?" He had more knives, fanning them out as he made a smug response. "Because I'm a prince." Tossing them at Hibari with a "bye bye" to assume he had defeated the carnivore.

Not quiet, in fact as the knives surged towards Hibari…

He opened his grey eyes, catching all the knives in his hands and surprising all that was watching. The two Arcobalenos smiled as Hibari doing this, and this was the turning point. He started studied the blades in his hand, noticing the wires that were at the ends of them. "Heh. I see how it is. Threads tied to the knives. This is just like the kind of wits used by weak animals in order to survive." He picked up his tonfas, standing back up onto his feet. "In that case…" The bottom of his tonfas fell out; a sharp ball on a chain fell before Hibari began to swing his tonfas at high speeds. Smiling, Hibari began to take down all the wires, not caring about his wounds bleeding from the velocity he was wielding his weapons. "I just have to knock every single one down."

"Uh," Bel said, getting nervous, "uh-oh."

Hibari charged, smirking at his scared prey. "Are you ready?"

Bel gulped, scared for once as the carnivore came in to tear him to shreds. "Wait… I pass!" And he barely missed Hibari's first strike of the now ball-and-chained tonfas, watching in horror as the cloud guardian destroyed a part of the school with a single strike. Just as Hibari turned to attack once more, Bel realized he better skip off elsewhere. "Pass again!" Bel said, confusing Hibari on what he meant. Bel grinned, although he was copping out on truly fighting the carnivore. "I don't mind bleeding my own blood to get into my serious mode, but… this is not the time or place for reminiscence. This is a group battle, you know? I'm going off to get the other rings." Bel began to run off, Hibari began to chase him, but Bel tossed some of his knives back to divert the cloud guardian. "Besides, just giving you that much damage is enough to consider it my victory. Bye~!"

And the Varia's storm guardian dashed off, using his blades as a distraction since Hibari had to deflect them instead of chasing after him.

Blood fell to the ground as Hibari flicked his arm recklessly, irritated by Bel's attitude. "All that talk for nothing."

Shamal was stunned, almost at a loss for words since he could tell that his cuts were deeper than he thought. Then again, Shamal and Basil didn't know Hibari as well. Hibari fell to a nearby wall, panting at the exhaustion that was beginning to set in. He had little time to rest, he had things to do. He glanced to the sky, seeing the orange streaks as the two sky ring bearers fought on.

"Oi. That Tsuna," Colonnello commented. "He's starting to slow down, isn't he?" The baby hitman looked at his counterpart, Reborn whom was also watching the match.

"No," Reborn said as Xanxus elbowed Tsuna in the face, sending the teen crashing to the roof. "Xanxus is speeding up." Xanxus did a rapid reload, aiming his guns back at Tsuna and looked at the teenager as if he was boring him. Tsuna leapt from the room, and Xanxus had gotten an idea where he was going.

"Hey, hey, are you for real? Still trying to rest?" Xanxus guns glowed, taking in his destructive flame as he fired his _Scorpio de ira_ at Tsuna.

"Rapid fire!?" Basil was shocked at his, as was Tsuna.

Tsuna gasped, not even getting out in time before the blow struck him directly. "The difference in their power is that much," gritted Colonnello. Tsuna fell to the back part of the school, hitting hard on his back from the impact of the blast.

"If he gets hit by that shot, it'll be bad," Reborn commented. "He just managed to avoid a direct hit. Even so, that was lucky."

Basil was surprised by the hitman's words. "Avoided?"

Xanxus landed in front of the rails on the roof, figuring out why Tsuna was able to do such. "Saved by your outfit," inquired the Varia leader. Reborn explained the bonus of the clothes that Leon made for Tsuna. The vest was ten times thicker, meaning it absorbed all the attack and was now gone. Tsuna's one lucky chance was gone, and he had to be careful. "Tsuna knows that very well too," Reborn said, surprising Colonnello.

"That Tsuna… He's going to use _that_ power."

Tsuna winced; moving his hands together is his fingertips touched. A light started to form, pulse, and Tsuna's eyes slide lower as he concentrated on using this technique. A burst of blames came from the center of his hands, and it was nearly big enough to create a shield in front of Tsuna along with the fire on his head getting larger. Now he was going to show Xanxus the technique he trained long and hard for. Flames and smoke expelled from Tsuna, creating a lot of wind as if he was the source.

"Th-that's… Master Sawada," Basil said in surprise, stammering over Tsuna's name.

"What is he trying to do… emitting the flames while standing over there…?" It puzzled Shamal why the teen was doing this.

"Discharging the flames uselessly is as good as throwing away his own life," exclaimed Colonnello.

A loud laugh was heard from above, as Xanxus watched this act. "You no longer see a chance for victory so you're getting desperate?" Basil knew that Xanxus was wrong about Tsuna being desperate. Tsuna had that strong will, there was no way he'd back down at this point. Reborn looked up at the screen watching quietly as he sees if his student knows what he's doing.

The flames spread around him, Tsuna closed his eyes as he concentrated on focusing the flames. But it was then when Xanxus noticed how Tsuna was using his flames. _Irregular flames that look like it's knocking… Could it be…!?_ As the flames became stronger, Xanxus finally realize just what Tsuna was going for. "The dying will zero point breakthrough," the Varia leader exclaimed, surprising everyone that he even knew about the technique.

"He knew!?" Maemi only knew of the technique by name, nothing else. Only the _head_ of the Izumi family had the privilege about how the technique in detail.

"Why does this guy know about it," asked Reborn, frowning that the Varia leader knew.

"I won't allow it," Xanxus said, charging quickly down to do just that. Tsuna opened his eyes, using his flames to jump up and out of the way as Xanxus landed on the ground. "You can't escape so easily!" Tsuna glanced down just as Xanxus delivered an uppercut with his gun in hand. The fast pace movements shocked all spectators, and Tsuna had little time for dodging when Xanxus came from behind; guns aimed, charging and sending another shot at the teen.

It hit Tsuna, striking his side, and the teen landed on the ground in pain. "He's moving in a totally different speed from before," the Ryohei's teacher exclaimed.

"That Xanxus," Reborn murmured, "he still has so much power left…"

"But why is he going all out to stop this technique? What is it," asked Shamal.

"Maemi," Aiko said, looking at her. "You know why, don't you?"

Maemi looked away when asked. "Maeko… She's the only one who would know the _exact_ details of this technique since she's the current head. She'd be the only one, aside from a few who did know, that isn't Vongla that would know the precise detail of the move."

"Because the Izumi family documents much of Vongola," Reborn said. "Knowing them intimately enough to the point they can defend themselves if Vongola decided to betray them."

"Is that correct!?" Basil looked at Maemi.

Maemi nodded. "Although it's not equal when it comes to information, the Izumi family would never use this unless betrayed. All Vongola bosses knew this because they had nothing to fear so long as they didn't betray us, the Izumi family." Maemi kept her gaze on the screen, praying that Maeko was right about Tsuna. That he wasn't going to lose to Xanxus.

He landed roughly, knelt down and he grimaced from his wound. Despite the pain, Tsuna tried once more to do the zero point, but above him Xanxus gave him some 'charity' in the form of _Scorpio de ira_. Tsuna turned around, seeing that there was little chance. It was going to hit him, and all spectating was worried about the teen.

"It'll kill him!" Colonnello could see that there wasn't a way he could dodge.

"Master Sawada!"

"With that!" Gritted Shamal

"Tsuna-kun," exclaimed Aiko.

The explosion from the attack was heard throughout the school.

Gokudera paused from his running, holding Lambo as he glanced out the window. "Boss…"

Hibari was tending to his wounds by wrapping them with ripped cloth, hearing the explosion and glanced in that general direction. Bel whistled from wherever he was.

"What happened," asked Shamal.

The smoke began to clear, and it was revealed that Tsuna was completely knocked out. In a bullet ridden crater, lying unconscious and his gloves reverted back to the mitts original form. His dying will flames were gone. Everyone gritted at the fact that Tsuna was down and out.

"Pfft, is he dead," inquired Xanxus after he landed. "Foolish scum," he sneered. "You brought forward your own time of death. Like a monkey imitating things you don't know about." _To think Maeko had so much faith in him… I just proved her wrong._ "Fufufu. Now that I think about it, there's no way a scummy fake like could have done it…" Reborn gritted, and Xanxus cupped his hand, the hand glowing as he prepared to attack. "Scum should turn to ashes like scum."

Just before he could attack, a flame flickered on Tsuna's head. Xanxus was surprised, seeing the flame become stronger and burst with strength. Tsuna opened his eyes and the mitts on his hands returned to his X gloves as he burst upright.

"What!?" Xanxus was in utter shock.

"Mr. Reborn," Basil exclaimed in pride.

Reborn smirked, "Yes. He's succeeded the dying will zero point breakthrough."

Tsuna standing on his feet left Xanxus speechless for once.

Reborn explained that Tsuna had to time going in between the plus state and the minus state. That while in the minus state, a state without dying will flames, he could absorb his opponents' flames and make them his owns. He even explained why the flames had to flicker when Colonnello asked why it was unusual.

"…That's what the first boss used. The dying will zero point breakthrough," Xanxus said.

"That's right," Tsuna replied.

Maemi stared. "The first Izumi head knew of this technique, and it was almost lost if it wasn't for the second head getting the details before hand…"

This caused Xanxus to laugh, laughing at Tsuna and calling it a masterpiece. "I don't know who instructed you but, the zero point breakthrough technique is not like that!" This surprised everyone, including Tsuna. Xanxus even pointed out the flaws of the matter of Tsuna's Zero point, stating that his was pathetic if it allow the user to suffer a great amount of damage. How was it possible for Xanxus to know this sort of information about the zero point?

Although Basil and Colonnello thought Xanxus was bluffing, it was Reborn whom confirmed it was the truth. Even still, with all the information that was true, Reborn also knew that the damage was mostly done by the flames of wrath. Reborn words, while trying to calm Basil that the training was done to do it, it was also for another reason. To help Tsuna reach a condition; a condition in which will lead him to the true zero point breakthrough.

Reborn ignored Basil exclamation that the training was a failure, and returned his attention back to his student's fight.

"It's the end, scum! I'm going to shoot you until you turn into ashes," yelled Xanxus as his guns charge on his flames.

"Then make sure you aim well," remarked Tsuna. This confused Xanxus as Tsuna moved his hands into position, this time into a diamond formation as the flames burst about his hands. "Next time, I'm going to do it right."

This shocked Shamal and Basil. "Blood of Vongola," Reborn mused. "His hyper intuition seems to have figured something out."

Tsuna stared at Xanxus sternly, "Zero point breakthrough revised." This shocked everyone as Tsuna's flames crackled around him, as he awaited Xanxus to attack.

"Fuu. Trying to come out with the zero point breakthrough again… How many times are you going to bluff your way through before you'll stop?" Xanxus appeared to not be happy with Tsuna's attempts to keep using the same technique, as if he knew that Tsuna's was completely flawed. "The real zero point breakthrough does not have that pose," snapped the Varia leader. Although it was strange that he knew the pose, the only person who would know would be the first boss and his guardians. And those people are dead, the Izumi family wouldn't dare leak such an important secret to anyone else.

But it was Reborn who thought of a possible reason why. "It can't be true."

"Could he have learned….?" Maemi flinched at the thought and most likely drawing the same conclusion as Reborn. "No way… It was… then?" Obviously, Maemi was aware of the incident several years ago. One that took Maeko's parents away; the day they went to Italy to see the ninth.

Tsuna didn't seem fazed by Xanxus' words. "I'm just going through my own zero point breakthrough."

Xanxus gave him an irritated look. "Pretentious little scumbag. I'm going to kill you so that you never speak of the name of that technique again." Xanxus fired a shot, accelerating towards a blind spot of Tsuna's, striking the teen before he had a complete chance to defend himself. Before Tsuna could even recover, Xanxus was already in front of him firing his gun. "Don't ever forget that!" The attack hit, sending Tsuna down into the ground and sliding; even though Tsuna attempted to get up, he fell back down unconscious due to the force of the attack. "Talking as if you still have a trump card, but you can't even prevent yourself from absorbing all the damage." Xanxus was scoffing at the "revised" part of the zero point, finding it complete nonsense. Jumping up and into the air, he shot down at Tsuna, sending his _Bocciolo de Fiamma_ at the unconscious teen.

The blasts kept hitting Tsuna, who screamed out in pain while Xanxus laughed insanely at how Tsuna was just letting himself get killed. "Taste your own despair, you fucking fake!" But as he continued to shoot, Tsuna had his flame back and was gazing at Xanxus. The way he looked at Xanxus, and because of the situation struck a nerve in Xanxus. It reminded him of how his father looked at him when he betrayed him all those years back. "You and him both! You're all low life scum," exclaimed Xanxus as he powered up his guns for another powerful blast. "How dare you defy me!" And with both pistols aimed at Tsuna, he sent his _Colpo D'addio_ straight at Tsuna.

It was a large blast; a powerful ending blow that could probably disintegrating all in its path. And it appeared as if Tsuna had taken the full blast. Xanxus landed, panting slightly from the attack, believing that Tsuna was turned to ash from that one attack. But coming from behind him was none other than Tsuna; the flames on his hands and head were larger than they had been previously.

Now it was Tsuna's turn to rebuttal that attack.

"It's my turn now, Xanxus," Tsuna stated, his hand reaching out to grab Xanxus. Xanxus, with his eyes wide in shock, blasted upwards to escape.

"Fucking die already," he yelled, looking down to meet the gaze of the young Vongola heir. The teen did a quick kick to the chin, flipping at a fast pace while Xanxus landed on his feet. Finally, he was on par with Xanxus's speed at this very moment.

Tsuna wasn't even finished with his assault as Xanxus charged towards him, calling him a bastard as he did so. Tsuna held one of his hands back, sending a large amount of flames to block Xanxus who continued to charge forth at him. But because he was blinded by his rage, he didn't see Tsuna appear behind him, giving him a back hand that sends him flying towards the ground hard. Of course the sudden difference between the two surprised Colonnello, and it was just going to get more impressive from here.

"Fuck you!" Xanxus lifted his guns just as Tsuna swiftly switched over to Zero Point Breakthrough Revised stance, just in time for _Martello de Fiamma_, the Hammer of flames.

It hit the mark, but didn't do any damage as Tsuna absorbed the flame completely. When he opened his eyes again, the flames became a part of his power. This made sense to Reborn now, seeing that his student was using Xanxus' flames as a source of power to keep fighting. Of course, seeing something like that shocked Xanxus. Xanxus couldn't accept something of the accord, charging at Tsuna who met him with his own attack. During the brief lock, Tsuna upper cut Xanxus, sending him flying and crashing into the school building.

The tide of the battle was beginning to shift.

**||| ### ||| In the area where the Rain match took place ||| ### |||**

"Whew… Just in time…" Yamamoto looked at his wrist where the Rain ring stuck out of his wristband. "Thanks! You saved me," Yamamoto said as Hibari started to walk off.

"You would mess up the discipline if you died on school grounds. If you want to die, go outside of school," the carnivore sharply remarked. Yamamoto laughed, pretending he didn't hear it. Hibari fell against the pillar, causing Yamamoto to raise concerns.

"Play substitution. I'll take over from here on," Yamamoto said, slinging his blade over his shoulder. Yamamoto Takeshi, the calm baseball-nut Rain guardian was now in the game.

**||| ### ||| Where the Sun match took place ||| ### |||**

"Thanks, octopus-head," Ryohei said, panting a bit.

"You're going to be giddy for a while," explained Gokudera and he placed Lambo down for a bit. "I need to go now. I have to go save the others. Take care of the stupid cow."

"In that case, take our rings along too. The chances are you running into Sawada first are higher," Ryohei stated.

"Got it," Gokudera said as he took the rings. Although, Ryohei's request of saving Lussuria surprised the storm guardian made him state that the boss would do the same in the case. Gokudera sighed, glancing over to where Lussuria was who was currently whining about how it was hurting. Ryohei Sasagawa may be benching himself temporary as he watched over Lambo, but the Sun Guardian was definitely going to be ready when he recovers.

|**|| ### |||Back with Xanxus and Tsuna ||| ### |||**

Wiping the blood from his lip, Xanxus laughed softly, looking at Tsuna from across the way. "How could I lose to your fake zero point breakthrough… From a scummy fake like you…" Xanxus muttered, looking directly at Tsuna who appeared to not be fazed by his words anymore. "Fuck. Fuck," Xanxus said as his anger boiled over, "you fucking bastard!" The scars on his face enlarged, covering the vast majority of his face, surprising Tsuna at how they grew with his anger. It appeared as if Xanxus was getting deadly serious all of the sudden.

**||| ### |||**

At the time this was going on, Yamamoto and Gokudera happened to run into one another. While they regroup, Gokudera finding it strange that Hibari would help others unless he wanted them to pay him back later. As they stood there, they tried to figure out who was the only one who wasn't saved. Lambo and Ryohei was accounted for, and so was Hibari given he saved both Gokudera and Yamamoto. That only left one ring bearer…

"The mist," exclaimed Gokudera as he realized it.

"That girl," Yamamoto yelled.

"Yeah! In the gym," the storm guardian exclaimed as they both ran towards the gym.

Hopefully they weren't too late.

**||| ### |||**

On the monitor from the watching booth, everyone could see Xanxus' face. The old scars on Xanxus' face, one engulfed the skin around his right eye, and crossed in such a way that it looked like a crude X on his face. "How dare you… low life scum…" Xanxus said as he got up. "Unforgivable." And with those words, the flame of wrath burst around him, catching everyone by surprise. "You're fucking dead!" Was his power bottomless?

"That's his fury," came familiar voice from the sidelines. This caused everyone in the watching box to turn around to see Dino and his men. His men were pointing their guns at a man in bandages, bound to the wheelchair and he wore a very similar trench coat and long white hair.

The only one who could know about Xanxus's fury, one who also knew the history behind the scar…

**||| ### |||**

Gokudera and Yamamoto arrived at the gym, bickering slightly at the door about how neither was in any condition, but that didn't stop Yamamoto from cracking a joke about it. As they entered, they notice the door was knocked down, and Gokudera wondered were Chrome was. "Where is Dokuro!?"

"Over here~" came a familiar voice of one of Varia's guardians as the trident Chrome used to fight was used to make a noise. Standing there, with a knife pointing at Chrome was none other than Bel. Chrome was tied up, panting from the matter she had yet to receive the antidote. "Would you like to hand over the rings you're holding," asked the fallen prince. "Otherwise, I'll peel the skin off her bones and kill her in the most gruesome way possible."

"Fuck you," snapped Gokudera. "You think we'd fall for that cheap trick?" Bel kept a calm face, bringing the dagger closer to Chrome's face. "Who do you think I am? We're the assassin squad, Varia, you know? When it comes to killing," Bel said, pressing the dagger against Chrome's skin. He nicked her, causing her pain, and it appeared he would do more if he wanted. "We don't bluff."

"Stop!"

"I don't trust you," said Gokudera as he grit his teeth. "Even if we had over the rings, you have no intention of letting Dokuro go. Isn't that right?"

"It's up to you to believe me or not, but," Bel warned, "if you keep dallying, she'll die from the poison before I skin her anyways." This didn't sit well with Gokudera, trying to think of a way to get Chrome back without risking the rings.

But it was Yamamoto who said they had no choice but to comply. And so he did, and that was only if they give Chrome the antidote when they hand over their rings. As the negotiation went on, just as Chrome got the antidote, Yamamoto kicked his sword over at Bel with his third offensive style of Shigure Souen, _Sudden Downpour_, striking the fallen prince in the shoulder.

This of course caught Mammon by surprised, and Yamamoto landed next to the baby hitman, his sword aimed at Mammon in a threatening manner. "Don't move," Yamamoto stated. However, Mammon wasn't going to make it any easier. He used his powers and multiplied, revealing that it was an illusion all along.

"Now our situations are reversed again," commented Bel as he held the knife against Chrome's cheek.

||| ### |||

"Impossible," exclaimed Basil," I don't believe it! You're still alive! Squalo!" It was none other than Squalo Superbi, Varia's Rain guardian wasn't dead after all. He was glaring at Basil from where he sat, and even he could see all that were in the box. Dino explained that his men manage to get him from the shark. Barely though, since Squalo himself was on the verge of death. And Dino had to find a doctor to perform the major surgery meant to save Squalo's life, which explained why Dino wasn't around for the mist match.

"Because I'm sure we can force some information out of this guy," stated Dino, looking at the Varia's rain guardian after he finished his explanation. A Cervello landed nearby, confirming that Squalo was the other guardian. But Shamal stated it wouldn't be right for him to enter the battle now since it was indeed late. She accepted; allowing him, Dino, and the men escorting him with guns to enter the observation box.

"This is good," muttered Squalo, surprising Dino. "That fury will make you stronger. That fury is the strength that'll turn your ambitions into reality. That fury is what aspired me to follow you." Squalo looked at the screen, not even caring that was being stared at by the girls that were in the booth with the rest. It mattered little to the crazed land shark, not when Tsuna and Xanxus were once again colliding on the battlefield.

Xanxus charged, his flames of wrath surrounding him as he came at Tsuna. Tsuna punched him, sending him back a little but it seemed like Xanxus was fighting back the fist he was getting hit with. Things took for the worse. Xanxus fury; it was making him difficult for Tsuna to beat. Because Xanxus took the attack full force, not backing down, he was bleeding from his mouth.

"What are you going to…" he looked up at Tsuna as his rage flared, "do with that!"

As they clashed, Xanxus instantly sending attacks back at Tsuna who just dodged. The two blasts from his guns were too strong, even Tsuna sensed it and avoided them instead of using the revised version of the zero point breakthrough.

"Fucking die!" Xanxus flew upwards, debris of the ground following in the wake of the blast from his guns.

Tsuna closed his eyes, shocking everyone watching. Just as he opened his eyes, that was when Xanxus and him gripped lock with their hands. More scars appear on Xanxus's arms became more apparent than ever if anyone was paying attention. Everyone, aside from a few, became worried. If Tsuna was to receive the flames in that trapped positioned, there was a possibility that he wouldn't survive.

Now that they were in the air, in a lock like that, Squalo muttered that it was the end. Their flames met one another, and a glowing began between the two of the upcoming clash between the strength of the flames. The two released their flames, and circle of light formed around the two. The circular cloud surrounded where the contact was.

Even as some of the smoke cleared, Xanxus visible, blood dripping from his mouth. "The outcome was expected," said Squalo.

"Don't panic at the same time." It was Reborn who pointed out that something was wrong with Xanxus' hands.

They were iced.

Completely covered in ice, and Xanxus' stare was just as frozen as he looked at his hands.

"This phenomenon… Impossible. It's the same as that time," gritted Squalo.

The smoke cleared around Tsuna who was staring down at his hands, realizing that this was the true Zero point breakthrough. Reborn explained the technique to the others, making them realize that it was a technique used to seal away dying will flames. A technique the first boss, Tsuna's ancestor, created.

Seeing his hands frozen, Xanxus became in raged at this. "How dare you," he bellowed.

**||| ### |||**

Things weren't going well in the gym. Mammon's illusions had snared the three guardians. Making it impossible for any of them to fight back. It would appear to be tentacle rape, but it was making Yamamoto and Gokudera panic. However, outside of the gym, while everyone in the observation box worried for the two; they're only hope was preparing to enter.

The one who clears the day by taking on any adversaries that threaten the family with his own body… Embodying the true traits of the Sun!

"_MAXIMUM CANNON,_" shouted Ryohei as he blasted through the wall gym, surprising all that was inside. Out of the wreckage, Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Chrome were able to pull out and see that it was Ryohei who did it. "Well, I hate being the slow one," he said when Gokudera was inquiring about the explosion.

**||| ### |||**

Tsuna and Xanxus stared at one another across the battlefield. "Why! It's impossible! How could a scumbag like you master the Vongola ultimate technique," demanded Xanxus.

"Those scars," Tsuna said slowly. "They're proof that you were once consumed by the zero point breakthrough over your entire body." The statement surprised Colonnello, and Squalo just fell silent as the young heir continued. "You can no longer ignite your flames on your fist. You have lost Xanxus."

Xanxus didn't take kindly to those words. He began to slam his hands against his knees, calling the ice that coated his hands 'fake rubbish'. But what caused him to stop was when Tsuna stated that when he incases him with his zero point, it will be far worse than scars the Ninth boss gave him. This just triggered Xanxus' rage. Claiming he was the tenth due to him having two X's in his name. Tsuna just knocked him down, and proceeded with the first edition of zero point breakthrough. Although Tsuna wanted to ask why, Xanxus snarled at him for it. Making Tsuna realize the Ninth asked him the same thing. Why did he do it? Why?

And with that, Xanxus was once again sealed in ice.

It was revealed, from Squalo, what happened in that Cradle event. The truth; however, Squalo managed to overhear something vital and key about Maeko's parents.

"That damned Sakuya, he claimed that it was Ricardo he was fighting! And that woman, she claimed the same thing!" Squalo was beyond furious. "Why would they claim he was the second boss! It made no sense then!" Squalo snarled, wanting to be released so he could more than likely go to Xanxus's side.

However, his words seemed to make Maemi realize something. Something only an Izumi family member would know that was highly vital considering how Sakuya Izumi got his rank. Unfortunately, she was distracted and looked over to see that Tsuna was at his bodily limit. And then, illusions of Levi and Lussuria came charging at Tsuna, two members who were more than down and out.

Seeing through the illusion, made Mammon state that Tsuna was still unable to move, let alone crawl given he had no strength. Mammon held the rings, stating that they had a hidden power and used the flames from the rings to melt the ice around Xanxus. While Xanxus was being thawed out, Bel snatches Tsuna's half of his ring.

Tsuna tried to get up, to stop them from putting the ring on Xanxus because he knew something they didn't. The ring glowed, overflowing with power and Xanxus started to stand up. Until he spewed out blood, the final blow of the ring's rejection.

"Im-Impossible! Unless….!" Squalo seemed to draw the conclusion just as the rest did who were watching.

"The ring has… rejected… Xanxus's blood…" The thing that the Ninth passed onto Tsuna was the truth. The truth behind Xanxus's blood.

Coughing violently, Xanxus glared over at Tsuna while Bel and Mammon were confused as to why his blood was rejected. "That's right… That old fart and I have no blood relation whatsoever!"

"Xanxus…"

"Don't fucking pity me! You Scum!" Xanxus was breathing hard from his injuries.

"I understood though… The betrayal you suffered and your hatred…. I understood it all…" Squalo was speaking, surprising Yamamoto that he was alive. That's when Squalo did reveal the truth. The truth that Xanxus was born in the Squatters, that he's had the flame since birth and that his mother became obsessed with the delusion that he, Xanxus, was the lovechild of an affair between the ninth boss and herself. The fact that Xanxus believed he was the ninth's son, until he found his mother had no connection to his father.

He knew ahead of time, that without the blood of Vongola, he would never be accepted as the successor.

"That led to the Cradle affair," said Reborn.

"That's all I know. I dug it up after the cradle affair though," stated Squalo.

"Then what about the Izumi family?" Dino looked at Squalo. "The Izumi family has relevance to this! Two people died to Xanxus because of the Cradle Affair."

"I told you, I don't understand either of their reasoning. They acted… possessed." Squalo gritted his teeth. "It's not like we planned on killing them! That woman… She shouldn't have had the courage or knowledge to wield that sword the way she did!"

Maemi grimaced at him saying that. There was a possibility to what he said.

"You betrayed the ninth boss… yet he didn't kill you…" Tsuna was starting to get up a little. "Even till the end, hadn't he always treated you with acceptance…?" Tsuna looked at him. "The ninth didn't care about bloodlines or the law. He believed in you more than anyone else." Xanxus gritted his teeth hearing this. "The ninth boss had always treated you as his own son…"

"Shut the fuck up!" Xanxus was beyond furious. "Don't make me sick with that unconditional love crap! What us is that shit!?" Xanxus continued his rant, speaking why he wanted to have the title of boss until he demanded that they kill all of them. If he couldn't have the boss title, then no one can.

"Master Xanxus!"

Bel and Mammon approved of this plan. However, someone in the sidelines was beside themselves. "Boss…"

Tsuna's guardians stood in front of him was prepared to fight. "As if I'd let you!" He glared. "Speaking of Maeko! Where is she!?"

Xanxus grinned sadistically. "Dead. She's no use to me now."

Tsuna flinched. "No… No way…!" He couldn't believe Maeko was dead. Something inside him wouldn't let him. He had a feeling she was still alive…

Mammon revealed, since Gokudera thought they were fighting the two, that an army of subordinates were coming. Obviously breaking the rules established. Due to this, the Cervellos agreed that Varia had been disqualified. They were going to release the infrared, but Reborn sensed something wrong. Reborn had Leon slide over his eyes to see that the lasers weren't disabled. That was because Mammon disabled the Cervellos abilities to disable it. Meaning that the teens were all on their own when it comes to facing the fifty plus Varia assassins called in. But Chrome could hear Mukuro saying something.

He was saying something about someone coming.

Just as she said that, three Varia members jumped down. Bel seemed pleased, particularly when he got the backup he wanted. Except they were reporting they were the only ones left, the person who wiped out the rest of their squad was strong. Just as they said that, a swirling tornado of a wrecking ball plows through them. _Boujareppa!_

It was none other than the 'Fake' Mukuro that time. Lancia didn't come to assist but he came to thank Tsuna in his own ways. Thanking him by wiping out the rest of the Varia troops that came to battle as well.

Bel threw daggers at Tsuna only to have them Yamamoto blocked his attack on Tsuna, and Chrome blocked Mammon from escaping with her illusions. All seemed to be the end of Varia's antics…

A loud clapping was heard, causing everyone to turn and look to see a man standing there. "That's enough. We, the Izumi family, we make certain Varia is punished for their misdeeds." He gave a sly smile and glanced at Xanxus. "Trash like him, how dare he harm our precious head. Hence why she shouldn't trust a man who killed her loving, sweet, parents without remorse."

"Brother!" Maemi was shocked to see her brother, Joben, there.

Dino glanced over at Maemi. "That's Joben!?"

"No mistaken, that's my brother!" She smiled. "He came to fulfill what Maeko would have, if she was alive…" She turned away, a look of pain in her gaze. "I… I can't believe Xanxus would kill her." Dino felt sympathy to the young girl, knowing it was probably the truth she felt remorse hearing her cousin was killed. However, he had a feeling Joben wasn't there on behalf of Maeko. From what he gathered, Joben was a mastermind behind two deaths in the Izumi family already. How little did she know of her brother's misdeeds?

Xanxus stared down Joben. "You're the trash trying to contact me, weren't you…?"

Joben laughed, brushing a black bang out of his hair. "Oh, me? A little, yes. A proposition, really. Shame you never heard it, considering I would have backed you." The sly, goofy smile turned into a sadistic grin. "Now that the brat, the old hag, and the second-in-commands' gone… I can reign."

"No…" Maemi covered her mouth in horror. "You killed grandmother Noriko!?"

"Ahh, yes…" Joben smirked. "She needed to be put out if I could proceed to convincing Xanxus of a supply for those Gola Mosca he made. What better than an Izumi head and second-in-command? Both have the potential of sky flames…"

Dino gritted his teeth. "That means… The attacks on Maeko were your doing! Just like how your father tired killing her before the cradle affair!"

Joben laughed. "Indeed." He smirked. "And sad too, Maeko is dead now. No family head present at this monumental moment."

Tsuna gritted. "No…" He looked at Joben. "Maeko-san… She's alive."

Joben laughed at Tsuna's words. "What makes you think that, stupid heir?"

Reborn smirked hearing this. "The bond between the first bosses of the family binds them." Joben glanced at the monitor to look at Reborn. "The two men had a specific tie, one that couldn't be phantom. One where they mutually believed in the other, and the moment the other dies they'd know it. Minoru is the cause of this bond."

"Minoru…?"

Maemi swallowed. "Minoru is also a possible cause for what happened at the cradle affair." She glanced at Squalo. "You said they were possessed. If that's true, then two souls came forth." She closed her eyes. "The first Izumi head possessed Uncle Sakuya in reaction to Xanxus being similar to Ricardo, the second boss of Vongola, and then the second Izumi head possessed Aunty Yumiko for the exact same reason. It makes sense." She looked away, wondering if her possible explanation would hold up to other possibilities.

Joben laughed at his sister's information. "Sadly, you'll never know." He smirked. "Because that secret died with Maeko, only the Izumi head knows Minoru's secret." He sighs and looks at Xanxus. "And so, now I'll eliminate you, Xanxus, for the crimes you've committed. The first was killing Maeko, which went to my plan."

"Went with your plan!?" Colonnello was shocked hearing this.

"Aye… killing her and finally getting my hands on Minoru." He gave a serious face, one that showed a smug grin as he showed the sword he was hoisting over his shoulder. "After all, I hate being a second-best cousin. Maemi was going to be the next family head, I was positive so long as it was her… She'd be a useful tool."

Maemi covered her mouth in horror. "N-No…. Brother…"

"Bastard! She's your sister!" Gokudera was beyond himself, even he wouldn't dare treat his sister Bianca like this.

"What about killing, Maeko?" The voice stilled Joben, he looked behind him to see the blonde haired woman wearing a Varia uniform. "Are you making baseless accusation against my boss?" Beside her was a few others, shorter than her and all wearing Varia cloaks as well. It was obvious that no one could see their face as they stood behind the woman, lotus emblems on their coats.

"Boss…!?" Gokudera gritted his teeth hearing this. "You're part of Varia!"

"Correct," the woman said. "I am Caprice. I am part of the Lotus unit in Varia. Xanxus is my boss."

Joben gave a nervous look at Caprice. "The Lotus unit serves Varia, yet is loyal to Izumi…" This surprised the teens about this information.

"What are you doing here, you worthless trash…?" Xanxus glared over at her, panting from his injuries.

Caprice looked at Xanxus, smiling at him and glanced to her right. Someone else walked in wearing a Varia uniform. "The _key_ has been safely delivered here, boss. Now…" She looked at the standing Cervello. "Please witness this battle. For this is an internal conflict for Izumi." She walked towards Xanxus, the Cervellos both looking surprised at what she said.

Joben gave a nervous look. "What are you talking about!? Ma-Maeko is dead!"

Tsuna looked at the person standing in the Varia uniform, noticing the height of the people were about his height, if not around it. "Maeko-san!" Joben looked at Tsuna in shocked at him saying that. "Maeko-san… You're alright!" He smiled. "Thank goodness…"

"Boss," Gokudera said looking at him. The rest of his guardians looked at Tsuna curious, some with sadden looks that he assumed the one standing in that group was Maeko.

"The brat is dead!" Joben glared at Tsuna. "She's dead! Not a bit alive!"

"Says who?" The person standing in the Varia uniform who wore a sword at their hip removed the coat, revealing it to be none other than Maeko Izumi. "You have an awful funny way of treating me, Xanxus." She snorted and looked at him. "You best be glad I like you, despite that horrid attitude." She looked at her cousin and smirked. "And don't bother with your men, all have been… taken care of."

Tsuna gave a relieved look. "Maeko-san…" Reborn gave a smirk, holding the tip of his hat to veil his face. He knew that what he said earlier was true. There was an odd bond between the two first bosses of both Izumi and Vongola. A bond passed down to Tsuna and Maeko, the heirs of those bloodlines.

"About time! Boss was worried!" Gokudera gave her a peeved stare.

Yamamoto smiled. "Maeko, wanted to keep us waiting for your grand entrance?"

"Maeko!" Ryohei smiled at seeing her alright. "Show this four-eyes not to mess with you!"

"See~ Told you Mae-chan was alright!" Aiko smiled, glancing at Maemi who was silent.

Hibari tilted his head. "Made him think you're dead…? Clever."

"Izumi-san alright…" Chrome smiled.

Joben flinched upon hearing this. "You… bitch!"

"I've been called worse. So what?"

The Cervello looked at Maeko. "Caprice made a statement of an internal conflict."

Maeko smirked. "You heard what he said. He killed two people in the Izumi family, conspired to use my second-in-command as leverage against Varia, and planned for my death." She gave a serious stare. "You know what this means, correct?"

The Cervello gave a tight nod. "Very well, I give you permission. The Lotus battle will commence now."

"Wait!" Joben was sweating bullets. "Why is a battle needed!? I just confessed!"

"There has been a long standing rule," said the Cervello. "If any sort of Internal conflict is to happen, the current head or second-in-command must fight the accused. If they win, final judgment is handed down by Vongola depending on the severity of the crimes." The Cervellos looked at Joben. "Vongla is considered an outside observer, and only hand down final decisions if someone in Vongola is involved. In this case, Xanxus of Vaira has been accused of killing the current head. He will, once recover, give his own final decision to your punishment."

Xanxus gave a weak smirk. "I've already said I'd kill the trash who kill Norkio."

Caprice went to Xanxus's side, sitting down behind him and smiled at him. "Rest, boss. Maeko has this battle in the bag." Xanxus gave her a glare, only meeting calm eyes and he grumbled something incoherent before laying his head in her lap.

Joben grimaced. "That sort of system…! You expect me to allow some brat to fight me…!"

Maeko pulled on some gloves that covered her hand, and unsheathed Minoru. "Oh, indeed, you will fight me. I accused you of multiple crimes." She glared at him. "And I'll use Minoru to slice the truth out of you. Prepare yourself!"

Joben paled, walking backwards as if he couldn't believe it.

"Face yourself, Joben," said a boy's voice from one of the remaining Varia members.

"If you don't, the Nishi family will be your end." Kagami's voice was heard. Both removed their cloaks at the same time. Kagami stood beside a boy with brown hair, he was bandage up and his left eye was covered. "We, the Nishi twins, shall be reapers if you dare run."

"Ryuji, you're suppose to be my hostage!"

Ryuji smirked. "Can't hide me forever. It was bound to happen that I was going to return Maeko's side, I'm her second-in-command." He looked over at Tsuna and his guardians. "You all can relax now, Maeko's going to show off that fancy combat of hers." He grinned. "Even if that means making good O' Joben paranoid."

Tsuna blinked at hearing this. "P-Paranoid?"

Maeko smiled as Joben got nervous. "You can't mean… you succeeded in using _that_, have you?" Joben wanted to know if what was said was true. That she was going to send him paranoid.

"I have," said Maeko. "And you're going to get a taste of it. Let's go!" She held the sword above her head with both of her hands, the tip of the sword pointing downwards as her feet slide apart into a stance.

Joben got into a defensive stance, sweating a lot as he adjusted his glasses.

Battle of the Lotus has begun: Maeko Izumi versus Joben Izumi!

**||| ### |||**

Joben drew his sword, the one he thought was Minoru, and swallowed. He never expected the teen to come after him, nor was he expecting that the sword he held to be a fake Minoru. The thought that Kagami cast an illusion on the sword to make him think he held Minoru made him feel like a fool. He killed Maeko this morning, stabbed her in the heart. Was that also an illusion too? "This time you'll definitely die…" He had more experience in battle, more time to know how to out predict the teen. Certainly, there was no way she could win.

"I'll make you eat those words, Joben." Maeko smiled at him.

Joben charged, sword drawn back and prepared to slice her horizontally. She held Minoru vertically, blocking the onslaught of slashes as Joben continued his assault. Maeko didn't flinch, not until he drew his sword back and she looked like she was going to take a tumble.

"You're mine!"

He slashed his sword downwards, slicing into the ground to find Maeko gone. He barely saw a blur moving when he slashed down. Maeko landed safely behind him, moving swiftly to his left as he was about to turn around to his left side.

"So fast," said Basil. "Just like Master Sawada!"

Reborn smirked. "So that's the other thing she was training for. The way of the Izumi has always mimicked this trait."

Dino glanced at Reborn before Squalo spoke. "Mastering the techniques of the Vongola boss." He smiled. "That's why her technique with the sword is unusual. She doesn't use just a sword, she uses her fist. Just like the first Izumi head who fought side by side with Vongola Primo." They all turned their gazes back to watch this fight.

Joben turned around, trying to spot her when an orange color caught his eye at the last moment. She made her move, surprising all as Minoru was coated in sky flames and she charged.

"Shit!" Joben blocked her first strike, a horizontal slashed that he manage to deflect and he was going to swing. Until her the sheath of her sword slammed into his face, stunning him and he staggered. His glasses fell off, hitting the ground and he stepped on them. "You… bitch…" Joben glared at Maeko, wiping his mouth as he got into an offensive stance.

Maeko kept calm, watching his moments before he charge, slashing downwards again and she turned her sword around. She used the hilt of her sword, to blocking it to make him stagger backwards and swung from the left side in a horizontal slash. The sword hits the mark, scorching Joben and he let out a scream.

"Dead hit!" Gokudera grinned, knowing Maeko won this. However, his grin turn to a frown when he noticed that Joben didn't have any outside injuries. What was that? She just sliced him and the sword went through his body. Should he be sliced in two?

Maeko smiled, sheathing her sword and chuckles. "Looks like someone lacks in swordplay."

Joben looked up, flinching at the sight he saw. "Grandmother… Noriko…?"

Everyone flinched at hearing him say that when the person he was looking at was definitely Maeko. Reborn smirked and looked at Joben.

"Minoru's special dual side ability is hard to defeat. Viper can attest to that," said Squalo.

"Dual side?" Basil glanced at him.

"Minoru has two special abilities given to it by the first Izumi head." Reborn looked towards the monitor at Maeko. "Both abilities need the sword coated in sky flames while striking the target, however, both outcomes are vastly different."

"How different?" Shamal looked at the baby hitman.

"Like night and day different, hey," stated Colonnello. "One technique instils a 'truth' into a comrade while battling. Simple things like 'I can win' or 'I cannot lose' are truths that anyone can agree with, hey. Although, it's been known to open _hidden powers_ before too." Colonnello gave a serious look. "However, the second technique is one that even Viper cannot, hey."

Reborn smirked. "The way to defeat an illusionist is to place an illusion in their heart. Or in this case, the second technique. Maeko is going to give Joben a taste of hell, a grand illusion of seeing everyone he killed before this match is over." He looked at Basil and Shamal. "The second technique can make whatever the opponent feels is truth as false or create and illusion they desire. 'I killed her' would turn into 'She won't die' and it also applies to someone who wishes to kill the other. 'I want to kill them' would be seen as 'they won't die, so I can kill them multiple times' and so forth."

Basil swallowed. "Scary… Lady Maeko can do that?"

Reborn smiled. "Obviously if Joben thinks he's seeing Noriko, who we all know is dead."

Joben rubbed his eyes, trying to focus to see if Maeko was still standing there. The illusion of his grandmother standing there with her lavender color kimono made him grimace. "You're not real! You died! I gave you that poison!" He stood up, grabbing his sword. "Why won't you die!?"

"Because the guilt in your heart will not let me die," state Maeko. "That's why you cannot defeat me." She held up her sword and looked at him. "Shall we dance?"

Joben was sweating bullets at this point before a grin plastered on his face. "We shall…" Swiftly, he pulled out a gun and aimed it at Maeko's head, the head he assumed was his grandmother. "Adios, old hag." He pulled the trigger, shooting the illusion of Noriko away as Maeko swiftly moved out of the bullet's projection.

She didn't give Joben time to look elsewhere, sky flames blazing on her hands as she moved in and gave him a harsh right hook. Joben flinched, staggering and started to aim again before she kicked the gun out of his hand. It skittered over towards Tsuna's guardians, pointing directly over at the two combating cousins.

Joben gritted his teeth, swinging his left arm madly as Maeko ducked and delivered a harsh punched to the abdomen multiple times. She may not have the strength of a man, but she had the speed her cousin couldn't match up with. She flipped backwards, getting out of Joben in case he decided to attempt attacking her. With the few punches she landed on him, he staggered and looked over at her.

He may be older, but he was more out of practice than she was. He hadn't fought in seven or eight years.

"The… fuck…?" He looked at her, panting and trying to hold his ground. "Sky flames…" He glared at her. "You're… that brat…"

Maeko smiled a little before shaking her head. "No… This time, I'll send you to purgatory before Xanxus has his way with you." She drew out Minoru once more, and Joben blinked. The illusion shifted again, a short haired man stood in front of him with a small smiled.

"SAKUYA!" Joben looked in rage, surprising Maeko that he said her father's name.

That moment of surprise gave Joben enough time, pulling out a second gun and he fired at Maeko's shoulder. It hit, she winced and turned away as he fired more bullets her way. She halted, lighting the flames on her right hand and created a flame wall behind her that was hot enough to melt majority of metals if not halt the bullets. She didn't stay behind the wall long, using the flames to shoot up and propel herself into the air.

Joben was laughing like a madman, squeezing all his bullets out at the wall of flame assuming that someone was still behind it. He leaned back, laughing and holding his head. "I killed your precious Maeko! Now you're out for my head too! Aha ah ha ha ha ha!"

He gazed up at the sky, seeing something bright and that was before Minoru and Maeko dropped down and pierced his heart. The sight surprised everyone aside from a few. Although the sword went straight to the hilt of Minoru, the end of the blade never appeared on the other side. Maeko stood there, holding the sword as Joben fell to his knees and eyes blank. After some time, she removed the sword and he kneeled over.

One of the Cervellos walked over, checking Joben's pulse and looked at Maeko. "He's unable to fight anymore. The victor is Maeko Izumi."

"Did she…?" Tsuna didn't want to believe she killed her own cousin.

"He's breathing," Maeko said. "I used a technique to seal him inside his mind for a while. This was used to normally polish and unlock powers within an Izumi, however, it can also be used to cause them to locked inside their minds and face the awful truth of the deeds they've done." She glanced over at Xanxus. "By the time he's out of it, he'll be babbling. Should give you enough time to recover and then give him his just desserts."

Xanxus wasn't conscious, but Caprice gave a nod. "Understood, Maeko." She smiled. "The Lotus unit will collect him and his lackeys for the boss." She glances over at Bel. "Actually, Bel and the rest of Varia can have fun with those small fries. I don't care if they die."

Maeko sighed softly and looked over at Tsuna. "Sorry for making you all worry." She smiled softly at the group. "Get some rest… We'll have a big o' party once you've all recovered."

The Cervello looked over at Tsuna and his guardians. "And also," she said since she was interrupted by Joben earlier. "The winner of the Sky battle is Master Tsunayoshi Sawada and his six guardians. Therefore, the next successor to the Vongola is Master Tsunayoshi Sawada and his six guardians."

Tsuna smiled, digging out the charm that Kyoko gave him earlier and smiled. "Everyone…" With that, he collapsed due to exhaustion.

"Now…" Maeko looked over at the Nishi twins. "Get the subordinates here, we'll have them tend to everyone here and cart them off home." She smiled, glancing over at Hibari. "Good thing you didn't lose, you'd get my fist if you did."

He smirked. "Is that so? No fancy sword play?"

Maeko smiled at him. "No fancy sword play. Minoru probably wouldn't work considering it accepts you." She sighs softly and looked at her subordinates. "Let's get to work. The Bucking Bronco and all in that box need to get out." She gave a stern look. "Chop, chop. We don't have all night."

With that, the Vongola ring scramble ended.

Everyone who was involved was bandaged up, and Tsuna slept like the dead until the next evening when Tsuna woke up.

**||| ### |||**

When he did, he spotted Lancia staying at his house until he heard that there was going to be a party from his mother. Except the only thing she knew was that Lambo was finally discharged from the hospital, and they were having the party over at Yamamoto's place.

Upon arriving with everyone in the Sawada house hold, everyone else was at Yamamoto's home celebrating. Including Aiko and Maemi. The only people missing was Chrome and Hibari from Tsuna's group, and Maeko. Despite arguing with Reborn on not being the next boss, Reborn pouted.

"But you and Maeko share the same bond as the first bosses of both family," said Reborn.

"That's not a reason for me being tenth!" Tsuna was firmed about it.

Reborn frowned. "Even though Maeko isn't here, I'm certain you would have been a great boss with her around."

Tsuna blinked, realizing that the Izumi head was nowhere in sight. "Eh, Maeko didn't show?" Tsuna glanced at Dino.

Dino sighed and looked at Tsuna. "Well, not technically. She did come by earlier but had to dart off because of work. "

"Yes…" Maemi walked over to Tsuna and smiled. "She had a prior appointment, but she wanted me to give you this." She handed him a what looked like a pin with the Lotus flower on it.

He accepted it and looked at Maemi apologetically. "About your brother…"

Maemi shook her head. "It's fine… The truth is harder to swallow…" She forced a smile. "At least I have my mother and Maeko… I should probably refer to her as my sister, Maeko." She looked away and sighs. "Because they haven't lied to me and still love me."

Aiko pounced her just as she started to look down. "No frowns! It's party time!" She dragged Maemi away to entertain Lambo.

Tsuna frowned a little and recalled something. When Aiko spoke to Hibari before the match, she said something about a kitten making him a scratching post. Could that mean that she was referring to Maeko? _Nah…_ Tsuna had a look of disbelief. _No way Hibari-san and Maeko-san are a couple! I mean… Those two are too similar and probably would only fight each other instead of doing couple things. Besides, I spotted him with some long haired girl, and I doubt it's Maemi…_ With a sigh, Tsuna returned to the festivities for the night completely unaware how close he was to the actual truth between the two.

**||| ### ||| With Hibari and Maeko ||| ### |||**

Sharp rapping on his front door irritated the carnivore, and he walked over to open to door to find a surprise. Dressed in a purple kimono was Maeko, wearing a wig and her hair was done up. Beside her was her aunt, who also wore an indigo color kimono. "Evening Hibari," Maeko greeted. "I figured tonight would be a good night. Mind if we come in?"

He glanced over at the older woman with Maeko, nodding and leading the two into the living room and made the two some tea. He returned, setting the tea set down and pouring them both a cup. Maeko sat beside her aunt, and Hibari sat on the opposite side of the table. "What brings you both here?" He glanced at Maeko's aunt.

"Ah-ha, you could tell we that this is a meeting?" Sakura smiled at him and looked at her niece. She looked back at Hibari. "Well, I heard from my niece, the current head of Izumi, that you are now part of Vongola."

"I guess…"

Maeko sighs at his antics. "He's the Cloud Guardian, auntie. The aloof cloud who watches over the Vongola family in his own way."

Her aunt smiled. "Ahh, perfect for how he is." She looks at Hibari. "Since you're dating Maeko, I need to ask some… personal questions." She gave a stern stare at Hibari, almost glaring at him depending on how he answered her question. "The first is, what is your plans in the future with Maeko? If you don't plan to marry her at some point, I'll just have you two break it off now."

"Auntie Sakura!" Maeko looked at her. "You can't just… assumed we'd look that far ahead."

Sakura gave a stern stare at Maeko. "I have to ask since he's the only man who touched Minoru without your permission and wasn't harmed." She looked at Hibari. "So, what is your answer, Mr. Kyoya." She glared at him. "Are you willing to marry her in the future? A woman who deals with the mafia here and keeps order?"

Hibari took a sip of his tea, sighing softly and looked at Maeko who seemed flustered at her aunt asking him about marriage. He looked at the Vongola ring he acquired and looked at Maeko's aunt. He hadn't truly thought of marriage between the two, but he did see the two together for a long time. "Marriage is a long ways away… however," he said, looking at her aunt. "I don't want to rush her. When the time comes, I'll marry her." He smiled and looked at Maeko. "I'm certain she'll always have a way to charm me. If we reach that stage, I'll get down and propose to her."

Maeko turned beet red at his words. "Hibari… Don't look at me like that. I have a lot of enemies…" She glanced away from him and sighs softly. "Since I'm an ally to Vongola, they tend to want to knock me down too so there isn't any way of assistances coming from Japan."

"I don't care." This made Maeko look back at him. "I'll be more than happy to bite them to death if they threaten you. You are my girlfriend, and I'll take on anyone, mafia or not, out if they are after your life." He smirked at her. "After all, I'm the only one who's allowed to make you cry."

Maeko slammed her hands onto the table, turning red once more. "Hibari! Don't say something like that you pervert!" She glared at him and shook her fist. "Where are your blasted tonfas? I'll be happy to prove otherwise that you'll get bitten!"

Hibari smiled. "They're in my room, but we can do that later."

Maeko was going to say something until her aunt coughed loudly. She became silent, sitting down with her hands in her lap, and falling quiet. It proved that despite her title, Maeko reacted to being scolded by her aunt like any child her age.

"Glad that was cleared up…" Her aunt glanced at Hibari. "I won't say about the… courting measures, but there's another matter to discuss." She smiled a little, glad to hear he was at least willing to marry her. He was a promising husband for Maeko, this is why Sakura was so insisting on meeting him right after the ring battles. "Since you're part of Vongola, we can discuss the rules and laws we have already established." She had a folder when she came in, and slides it over towards Hibari. "You can recommend laws and other things through Maeko and she can change them."

Hibari picked up the file, flipping it open and glances at her. "I have a feeling you want to say something else?"

Sakura laughed heartily at him picking that up. "Oh yes. If you marry Maeko, you'll have equal control over laws that are abided by those allied with Izumi and Vongola." She smiled at him. "My father had the same power as my mother, Maeko's grandmother. Everyone respects the husband or wife of the head of the family."

He arched a brow at hearing this, seeing Maeko fidgeting and he sighs. "That's an incentive, isn't it?" He set the file down. "If I'm going to marry her, it's out of love and not this incentive." He smiled a little and glances at Maeko. "She may be a head to a Mafia family, but she's still herself. I don't see her power in the mafia, I just see Maeko as she is."

Maeko glanced up, smiling a little and sighs. "Auntie… are we done with those line of questions?"

Sakura smiled a little. "An interesting partner you are…" She sighed softly and shakes her head. "I'm sorry if I was too forward… You are correct about marriage by obligation." She looked at him. "At least marriages with incentives, my husband was just like this and I never knew until he betrayed my brother." She stood up and glances at Maeko. "I'll go sit in another room and rest." She smiled softly. "You two behave while I'm here." After saying that, Sakura walked away and into another room.

Hibari arched a brow at her going off into another part of his home. Not that he was bothered, he figured she was testing him again with temptation of his girlfriend. "Maeko," he said, looking at her. "You forgot something."

"Forgot?" Maeko gave him a puzzled look.

He smiled at her and shakes his head. "Something after last night, you forgot it."

She frowned at him and got up. She walked over to sit beside him and lightly hits his head. "I forget nothing." She smiled, kissing his cheek and hugs him. "Congrats on winning the match!"

He snorted at her and looked at her. "You're silly."

"Silly because I'm congratulating you?" She looked at him curiously.

"No… Because you kissed my cheek." He kissed her lips lightly and chuckles. "I wanted a kiss on the lips, my silly kitten."

She bit his bottom lip. "Rodger, next time it'll be square on the lips." She smiled at him and cuddled closer. Hibari smiled at her, wrapping his arm around her and just enjoying her being close to him. A quiet night between the two. Not saying much and enjoying the close proximity of one another.

Unaware that the next day, Reborn would be missing and Tsuna frantically looking for him.

* * *

**That's the end of this installment! Now onto the future arches! Fun… *slaps cheeks and huffs.* No! Gotta stay focus or I'll start getting lazy. But that's only at the end of super long chapters…. Well, I hope Maeko's fight was well. Anyways, I'll see you guys in the next chapter when Tsuna is sent to the Future! And thus, the future arc beings…. **

**Rate and review, and I'll see you all next time. Ciao~**


	7. Chapter 7

**Welcome to Chapter 7 of Cute for my Cloud! An Hibari x Oc pairing, and I'm the author of this lovely fan fiction. *curtsies* Today we embark on the **_**Future Arc**_**, the one arc I've been dreading but also excited for! I'll have to divert from the romance between Maeko and Hibari a little, but there will be **_**plenty**_** of it later on. Why? Well, obviously, we'll have to meet the Future Maeko and Future Hibari to get a vast update of what they've been up to these past ten years. *giggles.* Alright, I've psyched myself up, and prepared to do this! I'm in for the long haul, and I'll get to the other pairings I've hinted in other stories. Anyways, enjoy this next installment of Cute for my Cloud!**

**Disclaimer:**_After this point, all chapters will feature a –FT to show that it's in the Future time and a –PT for the present time when they return to their present time period during the future arc. This is the starting point when it all beings, so afterwards you all will see these labels behind the chapters._

* * *

**Chapter 7**

Tsuna darted out of his home, hurrying to catch up to both Lancia and Basil. Reborn was running with him, keeping pace with the teen as they both spotted the two. "Hey, wait up you guys!"

"Sawada-dono! Reborn-san!" Basil turned, surprised he followed.

"Vongola," greeted Lancia.

"Why are you going back to Italy… without saying anything?" Tsuna was panting in between his question, but he had to catch his breath after running for so long.

"My apologies," Basil said with a small smile. "We were to suddenly summoned and I believed everyone to be busy."

"As for me," Lancia said looking at Tsuna. "I'm not one to bother people, so I was trying to escape." Maybe he was trying to escape Lambo and I-Pin who were all over him the morning of the festivities? Then again, Lancia had quite a bit of patience with the two poking and prodding at his face.

"Huh? Where's is Lancia-san's iron ball?" Tsuna noticed the signature weapon wasn't with Lancia.

"Hmm.. I'd get a lot of questions traveling with that… so I'm leaving it to the couriers." He sighed a little, knowing he gave it a lot of thought about how he traveled with his weapon.

"I.. I see…" Tsuna was a bit baffled. "Wait… Couriers... as in mafia couriers?"

Lanica gave a small smile. "The Izumi family helps other mafia families with thing, so yes. They have personal ties to specific couriers of other mafia family. However, this time I didn't use Izumi."

Tsuna blinked. "So you knew about the Izumi family?"

Lancia nodded. "A little hard to miss them if you're part of mafia, then again… you weren't sensing them since you weren't part of mafia before. I'm certain even now, their spies are watching every move a mafia member makes to keep that head informed of what is going on."

Tsuna was surprised to hear this from Lancia since it held a bit of truth. Before this, he wasn't even taking notice of Maeko or anyone who she associated with. There have been times when he bumped into her, before he knew she was a girl, on the streets talking to some men in suits. Guess they were her subordinates because the moment he came to ask if she was alright, the men clicked their heels and went off when Maeko asked.

"Lancia, I heard from Chrome that it was Mukuro who asked you to come?" Reborn inquire surprised both Lancia and Tsuna.

"No… I haven't been in touch with Mukuro since that time. But, the day before the battle for the rings of the sky, I had a strange feeling." He glanced away a little. "It's likely that, because of the amount of time I spent under his control, I can sense his thoughts more easily than others. Ironic, isn't it?"

"Lancia-san…"

"Don't worry about it." Lancia looked at Tsuna. "I may not want to forgive Mukuro, but being able to help you as a result of that connection was enough for me."

Basil looked at Lancia. "Do you still wish… to pay visit to the deceased family members?"

"Yeah," replied Lancia. "I have only one lifetime in which to repent… for making that incident possible."

"No way…" Tsuna look at Lancia in disbelief. He was paying for the sins of Mukuro, blaming himself that he was the cause of it all.

"Oh right, this is for you." Lancia pulled a ring off his finger, surprising Tsuna, as he held the ring between his index finger and thumb. "This is my boss's treasure…. although it's not as good as a Vongola ring."

"Wha…! Such… an important item..!" Tsuna looked at the ring in his hand briefly before looking back at Lancia.

"Don't worry. I want you to have it."

Basil came up to Tsuna, handing him something too. "This is from me! I do not know if it suits Sawada-dono, nevertheless…. should you find yourself in an emergency, please use it."

"Ah?" Tsuna took it and was puzzled by Basil's words.

"Let's say our farewells here," said Basil.

"Yeah."

"But," interjected Tsuna.

Just then, Basil noticed someone coming fully speed. It was Lambo, running after the two thinking they were going on a picnic. "Lambo-san wants to go on a picnic too!"

Tsuna grabbed onto one of the horns on Lambo's head to halt the child. "Lambo! Hey, wait a second!"

Lancia and Basil both turned away to head towards their destination. "Well then, farewell," said Basil.

"Take care!" Tsuna smiled at them while holding Lambo.

"Bye-poo!"

Someone in the shadows was lurking behind the nearest corner of the three left there.

"Geeze Lambo," chided Tsuna.

"Really annoying," commented Reborn. "By the way, what did you receive from Basil?" Reborn looked up at his student in curiosity.

"Ah, come to think of it." Tsuna glanced down at the bottle in his hand and gawking at what Basil gave him in case of emergencies. "It's the dying will bullet in pill form!"

"Candy," exclaimed Lambo, not understanding what a Dying Will Bullet could do to him.

"There's… there's no use in giving me this!"

"Not true," stated Reborn. "You will be constantly targeted from here on out."

"Don't… don't joke around!" Tuna started to sweat a little while looking in complete shock at Reborn while Lambo attempted to take the dying will bullets. Tsuna tried explained why eating it would be bad, since the little child would go into dying will mode and Reborn already predicted that Dying Will Lambo was going to be annoying.

"Ahh, Reborn! Right now, wasn't that too heavy on me?" Lambo looked down at Reborn while Leon, who was on Reborn's hat, started to change shape.

Tsuna frowned at Lambo. "Wait. You mean to say too 'hard'?"

"Picker?" **

Tsuna gawked at the child. "Wrong!"

Leon slivered onto the ground while Reborn held onto his tail. "Like I said, annoying," commented Reborn. Just then, Leon completed transformation and Reborn used him to shoot a ball and chain at Lambo. "_Boujareppa!_"

It was a direct hit, knowing the cow child off Tsuna's shoulder who probably expected this given how the two always did this no matter the time and day. Including the few times it caused havoc for a certain person who was completely normal and witness this.

Lambo landed roughly onto the ground, lifting his head as he slowly spoke. "Per…se…vere…" However, he burst into tears despite what he said.

"What are you doing Rebonr!?" Tsuna went over to the crying child.

"My patience has reached its limit."

"But Lambo just got out of the hospital," countered Tsuna.

"Stupid Reborn!" Lambo pulled out the ten year bazooka from his fro. "You frown face!"

Reborn twitch at seeing and Tsuna tried talking Lambo out of it. Obviously using that on Reborn would be a bad idea. Reborn was bouncing what looked like a rock and threw it at Lambo. The bazooka went off, proving that Reborn was merciless as ever. However, a missile that shot out of the ten year bazooka turned towards Reborn and Tsuna. Tsuna got out of the way, but Reborn stood there saying he can't move.

Tsuna covered his face, the rocket hitting Reborn dead on. Tsuna drew the conclusion that was reasonable. If that meant he was hit by the ten year bazooka, that would only lead to a ten-years later Reborn to appear in the baby hitman's place. Tsuna swallowed, thinking he saw a shadow but as the smoke clear Reborn was nowhere to be found. Although definitely odd, Tsuna figured that he'd reappear after five minutes were up.

However… five minutes turned into a whole day.

Panicked, Tsuna went to look for his home tutor who had yet to return from the ten year bazooka. He ran into Gokudera and Haru, both were on their way of visiting him and he explained the situation to Gokudera who seemed to pale at hearing this. Despite his worries, Tsuna ran around streets yelling for Reborn. Then he had a bright idea, one involving older Lambo would probably know what was going on. He returned home and took out the bazooka from Lambo's hair after Lambo denies knowing about it, it was jutting out of his hair!

"You can't use it! Boss said nobody should use it!" Lambo desperately grabbed onto the end of the bazooka.

"You're already using it all over the place," yelled Tsuna.

"You can't!"

"Don't say that, I'm begging you," Tsuna yelled, desperate because this was the only idea he had to find Reborn.

"No way!" That's when Lambo hit the trigger to the ten-year bazooka, saying a little 'oops' before Tsuna yelled. Tsuna got hit with the ten year bazooka, sending the teen straight into the future.

**||| ### ||| Ten years into a future…. ||| ### |||**

Tsuna landed into something hard, laying on his back as well as he noticed it was dark. He pushed the top open, seeing light and it revealed he was sitting in a coffin with the Vongola crest and a big X in the center. He lay in a bunch of flowers and what looked like a forest.

"This is ten years into the future…?" If he had exchanged places with his future self, then that means he was there at this location in the future. Tsuna took a good look around, trying to figure out where he was and looked at what he sat in. Figuring it out that he was in a coffin.

"This… Eh!?" Tsuna looked shocked at this. "Why am I in a coffin!?"

"Who's there!?" A voice came from behind, scaring the teen as he turned around to see a familiar silhouette. The hair was the same to a certain storm guardian of his. "Ah…. You're…!" To welcome Tsuna from his travels with the ten year bazooka, was none other than the familiar face of an older Gokudera Hayato. However, Gokudera had an air of maturity as well as looking very uneasy while wearing a suit.

"Huh… that face, it can't be…" Tsuna was a little nervous.

Gokudera fell to his knees, grasping both of Tsuna's shoulders. "Tenth!"

Tsuna realized that Gokudera gotten bigger over the years. All of the sudden Gokudera started to apologize about something. Tsuna reminded him about the five minutes of the Ten-Year Bazooka, and he nodded in understanding.

Gokudera grit his teeth before hanging his head as he spoke. "Listen carefully, boss. Please, when you return to the past, you must remember this moment and do exactly as I say." Obvious confusion came from Tsuna, and Gokudera continued. "There's no time for details. When you get back, you must elimate this person immediately!"

"What!?"

Gokudera hands Tsuna a picture of someone, a man with glasses. "This is a picture of him from this time. You should know him from your freshman year of middle school."

"Eh?! Who is this? Did you say eliminate!?"

"There's no need to hesitate."

"No, but… Wait a minute! By _eliminate_, you mean _to kill_, right?"

Gokudera gave a serious face while saying this. "If only that guy didn't exist, _Byakuran_ wouldn't be like this."

"Byaku…ran?" Tsuna realized something while speaking to Gokudera. The atmosphere has been serious. What in the world happen in these past ten years?

"The next thing I'm going to say is just a precaution…"

"Umm… One thing that's been bugging me… why am I in a coffin?" This shocked Gokudera, visibly flinching at these words. Tsuna gave a nervous smile. "Why is the future me… in a coffin?" An innocent question, given his predicament, and only because he wanted to know the reason behind him waking up in a coffin ten years into the future.

Gokudera looked obviously pained at trying to tell him the reason. "That is… because…"

Just as he was about to give an answer, a puff of smoke escaped the future Gokudera and the one he's known all this time, the present Gokuderea pops out of the smoke. "Gokudera-kn!" Just then, he missed his chance to find out the truth.

Gokudera explained how he got there, saying he got the exact same idea as Tsuna and got hit with the ten year bazooka. That's when Gokudera examined the coffin. "Hmm, what's this? Looks like a coffin."

"It doesn't only look like it…" Tsuna had a shocked, almost, depressed look.

Gokudera sat down, depressed about seeing the tenth waking up in a coffin.

"Um… Gokudera..kun." Tsuna reached his hand out a little. "Gokudera-kun? Are you alright?"

Gokudera shot up from where he was sitting. "What the hell has the future me been up to!? Why is boss in a coffin!?" Gokudera fell back to the ground, on his knees as he bent over and proceed to slam his fist against the ground as he bemoan the fact that he wasn't fit to be the right hand man despite no one mentioning that Tsuna died.

Gokudera assumed since Tsuna's future self was in a coffin that only lead to one thing: death.

"And I've been told a way to stop this scenario from happening." This seemed to get Gokudera out of his tangent of belittling himself long enough.

"That's… that's right! In five minutes, when we go back to the past…. We just need to kill the person in the photograph." He paused a little. "Maybe Maeko would know a good way to end the bastard who caused the tenth to be like this!"

"No…no, no, no! We can't _kill_ people!" Tsuna held his hands up in holes Gokudera would calm down. "The first thing we need to do when we get back in five minutes is to…" He blinked, realizing something as he turned around.

"What's wrong," inquired Gokudera.

"Hasn't it already been more than five minutes since I got here?"

"What?" Gokudera looked over at Tsuna surprised.

Now that Gokudera pondered it, he had been there more than five minutes too. This sent Tsuna into a panic. How was it possible that they haven't returned to the past despite the fact the five minutes rule for the time-travel with that Ten Year Bazooka? Gokudera figured something was wrong with it, and that sent Tsuna into a more panic since they didn't know what was going to happen to them.

"We can't be sure that's what happened. Maybe we won't be able to go back…" Gokudera seem to draw that conclusion.

"Argh! That's terrible!"

"Not really… It's just a guess…"

"What should we do," Tsuna exclaimed, both hands in the air as his stomach let out a loud grumble.

"In any case, let's eat this Yatsuhashi!" Gokudera held the bag he was carrying earlier up. The two ate the mean, and Gokudera wondered where they were at. He figured not in Japan, and opened up the suitcase his future-self had. Tsuan tried to discourage him, but he knew it was his anyways so he knelt down to see what was in the box.

A litter of things fell onto the ground: a sealed envelope, a packet of open cigarettes, a compact, a handkerchief, a ring box, a rusted ring box, and something with the Vongola emblem on the pouch.

Gokudera examined the old box, picking up a piece of paper that had strange script or hieroglyphics.

"What's this?" Tsuna looked at it. "It looks like a drawing."

"This is G-script," exclaimed Gokudera. He explains that when he was a freshman, he created his own alphabet. He took a closer look at the G-script. "Let's see… 'guardians… gather'…"

A sound of a footstep surprised the two. "As I expected…"

Gokudera turned around. "Who's there!?"

"Hello, fellows." Blue hair was visible, thick glasses cover the face as the cloak this person wore covered up their face along with a metal object on their right shoulder. A hand moved under the cloak, showing an array of rings covering one hand, and another was covered in a glove with a metal plate on top. "Goodbye." Wind blew behind this person, and Gokudera jumped in front of Tsuna.

"Stay back, tenth!"

"Gokudera-kun!"

"This one is mine!" Gokudera swiftly lit his bombs, sending them propelling towards the retreating assailant. "Don't even think of running!" Gokudera kept up his assault, sending more and more bombs after whoever was running.

The cloaked assailant touched the metal part of their gauntlet, the ring on their middle finger glowed as the hand with the gauntlet moved and a shot sliced the bombs in half. Gokudera was shocked, the bombs exploding and Tsuna dodged. Gokudera was trapped in a web of what looked like flames.

Tsuna went to ask Reborn what he should do, but then he realized that Reborn wasn't there.

"As expected, the ring still can't be used properly." The assailant climbed over the fallen debris towards the two. "What a waste…"

"Use the ring properly?" Gokdera bit down hard on his cigarette.

"Wh-what does that mean?"

"Don't hate me." The cloak fell down enough from this person's face to reveal red looking tattoo if not the black veins on their face. "Now, _die._"

"Boss! This person is dangerous! Please… _run away_!"

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna started to get up. Tsuna didn't want to take the dying will pills, but he can't help it. It's an emergency fight, he _has_ to take them. Slipping his gloved mitts on and swallowing a dying will pill; Tsuna reopen his eyes as he enters his hyper will mode.

In the shadows to the side, someone wearing a coat smiled at seeing this transaction. "Time to show us what you can do, Tsuna-kun," quietly said the person. "After all, the Lotus will constantly watch over you." This person kept hidden, a ring glowing on their slender ring finger as they disappeared once more. Veiled in illusion, this spectator can watch this battle without worry of the combatants noticing them.

This will be Tsuna's first fight without Reborn. Tsuna versus this mystery assailant!

**|||| ### |||**

The assailant shot at Gokudera who was trapped in a flame like web. Sky flames swiftly covered over Gokudera's position, burning whatever was shout out as Tsuna landed onto a nearby tree.

"Tenth!"

"This high density energy isn't even phased by the 9mm bullet…" The assailant's glasses lit up. "I've been waiting for this. You, in hyper dying will mode."

Tsuna looked at the attacker. "Why did you attack us?"

"We have now reached a crisis point. Whoever attacks firs will gain the upper hand." Tsuna looked a little puzzled by what they said. "The next bullet is different from the lead shot, so even that flame can't extinguish it." Another shot coming from the gauntlet was sent.

Tsuna blasted off the tree, flying away from the projectiles until he noticed that they were homing in on him. He threw up a flame shield, the pullets landing a direct hit on him.

"Tenth!"

Tsuna fell from the blast, wondering if the bullets that hit him could only be one thing. The very one thing that even he couldn't block while fighting Xanxus…

"I won't even let you catch your breath. If you die here, it means you would have only been a burden." The assailant raised their weapon. "If you want to live, then you must _survive_!" The homing bullets shout out once more, and Tsuna's eyes snapped open at them as he took another hit again and again.

"B-Boss!" Gokudera could only watch helplessly.

"You're only at this level after being tutored by Reborn? To think you defeated Xanxus like this…." The assaulter scoffed at this. "Even that worthless Lotus boss vouched for you. You're useless unless Reborn is with you."

Out of the mist, a familiar diamond shaped hand pose was done. "How do you know about Reborn?!" He narrowed his eyes, it was interesting how in two sentences that this person not only knew Reborn, but also mentioned Maeko. The only person he knew that had the Lotus insignia was Maeko's family, the Izumi.

This surprised the attacker, who was on a tree branch, was surprised to see that Tsuna's flames just got stronger. "Minus point… Reborn!"

Tsuna looked at this person seriously. "Why…" Tsuna burst from his location, the assailant unable to see him as he delivered a swift backhand with his right hand that they ducked under. However, they weren't able to dodge his left hook that he delivered straight to their abdomen.

Blood spewed out of the foe's mouth, knocking them back until they awkwardly landed onto a branch further away. Taking the cloak off, it became more apparent that the one attack them was none other than a female. "Oh, I see…"

This surprised the two teens.

"A woman," exclaimed Gokudera.

"It seems as though you have potential, Sawada Tsunayoshi. Even at my full strength, I still can't beat your fighting power, but… only at the old levels." Her words made Tsuna looked at her in wonder. "At your current levels, in this era…" The ring that glowed earlier shined once again and she took a box from her hip. A ring box and she inserted the glowing ring into an opening. "You cannot survive!" She jumped towards Tsuna and shot at him once more with the shotgun equipped to her arm.

Tsuna burst forward to take her on, however, something shout out of the corner of Tsuna's vision that he didn't pay attention to. A millipede covered in dying will flames started to coil and surround Tsuna.

"What the hell!?" Gokudera couldn't believe what he was watching.

Tsuna grabbed onto one of the millipede's junctures and sent his sky flames blazing across the insect creature. However, doing this backfired on Tsuna. It drained him of his strength, and he fell to the ground. The woman landed before him, holding her gun at his face.

"To think that you fell for such a basic trap, what a deplorable Vongola X."

"Wait a fucking minute," exclaimed Gokudera.

"She's right…" Tsuna admitted it. Without Reborn, he was only half a man… If Reborn was around, this scenario wouldn't have happened.

"You pass. I'll waive killing you," said the assailant, surprising the teens. "My name is Lal Mirch." Once Gokudera was free from his prison, he went over to check on Tsuna. Lal Mirch gave them chains, just like Mammon had, to wrap around their rings as she recollected her cloak and wrapped it around herself once more.

Of course, Gokudera wasn't one bit happy about this. This woman attacked them out of the blue, knew about the Vongola Rings, and he was casting suspicions onto her for what considered a good reason.

"We should depart quickly. You can't go barefoot, put these on." She tossed the shoes she had and ignored his inquires. Even when Tsuna explained they were in shocked, he had a feeling this woman wasn't an enemy. "Guys who can't follow are better left to die than saved." She turned around, the markings around her eyes became more apparent. "And I don't have the time."

"Listen to what she has to say, you two." The three of them looked towards the sidelines, Lal Mirch lifting her weapon. Walking out of the forest, dressed in a white coat and brown knee high boots came another familiar face to both Gokudera and Tsuna. Smiling in front of them, her hands behind her back as she looked at the two with a lotus pin to the lapels of her coat. "Lal Mirch is in a hurry. I'm certain me being here will calm you, nee Goku-kun, Tsuna-kun?" The woman tilted her head to the side as she gave a sweeten smile.

It was none other than Aiko Kaneshiro, Maeko's best friend, who aged gracefully in the past ten years.

Gokudera's jaw dropped seeing her at first and Tsuna gawked. "Ah, Storm guardian Aiko," Lal Mirch said as she dropped her weapon, making the teens snap back to reality. "I suspect Lou demanded you to come here?"

Aiko shook her head. "No, I followed Goku-kun, or rather this time's Goku-kun." She gave a sadden smile. "I just had this feeling, and Lou told me to follow my woman's intuition." She glanced at the two boys. "Please hold all questions until we're at base, the secret base." She gestures them to get up, and the two looked uncertain.

"Is Reborn here too?"

Aiko smiled again, showing she matured over the years. "Come now, we can't dawdle. I promised we'll answer everything. Just have faith a little longer." However, Lal Mirch destroyed that possibility. She stated that none of the Arcobalenos were alive but dead. That included Reborn, stating that he obviously wasn't here.

"Lal Mirch," Aiko snapped. She glared at her as if the blunt words was a bit too hard to swallow a this point.

"We must hurry." Lal Mirch turned and hurried swiftly to their destination.

Aiko gritted her teeth, glancing at the teens as she too swiftly ran behind Lal Mirch. Tsuna and Gokudera both didn't say a word, running after Aiko who seemed to be withholding information. Questions were buzzing in Tsuna's mind as he ran after the two women with Gokudera trailing directly behind him.

Who was this Lou person? Was Reborn really not here? What about Kyoko and the others? Why was Aiko considered the Storm Guardian of the Lotus? Just who are they running from? So many questions and so little answers…

All he can do was follow their instructions until he gets the answers they promised.

* * *

**Okies… So these Future Arc chapters are going to be in smaller doses unless there's a HUGE battle going on that I cannot afford to break unless for dramatic reason. These will be updated rather frequently since, as stated, they're smaller compared to the longer winded chapters that were full of nothing but battles. *happily bounces* So, in other words, you should see these a little more often. For those fans who read the manga of the series, some of the asterisks (**) were hinting to the explanations that the manga presented. Like how Lambo was making a play on words.**

**Anyways, I'll see you in the next installment when they get to the base and find out more things. Ciao~**


	8. Chapter 8-FT

**Welcome to chapter eight of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**, a Hibari x Oc pairing. We'll pick up from last time, and a few things will be explained. So please read and leaving a review is greatly appreciated. Now, onto chapter 8!**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

Leading the way through the forest was Lal Mirch, closely followed by Aiko who glanced behind her to make sure the teen boys were following the two. Tsuna was ahead of Gokudera, still uncertain about what Lal Mirch said was true. Was it possible that Reborn didn't exist in this world?

Gokudera seemed to sense Tsuna's uneasiness, glaring at the back of Lal Mirch. "That shitty bitch," he muttered furiously to himself. He didn't need her overhearing him and pointing her gun at him once again right now. As they made the clearing, Aiko stood behind Lal Mirch as she tested the water. "Hey woman! Stop a minute…"

Aiko's gaze was on the forest as if she was looking for signs of disturbances. "I'll keep an eye out…" She moved a little downwards, Lal Mirch nodding that she heard what she said.

"Boss, a river! We can drink some water!"

Tsuna was surprised by to see it since kind of fell behind Gokudera a moment ago due to the debris. "You're right."

"Please, go first." Gokudera a smiled as they both knelt down beside the river.

"Thanks." The two scooped a bit of water into their hands, glad to have a drink after running for so long.

Gokudera turned his gaze towards Aiko, surprised to see how much she changed over the years. There wasn't a childish vibe to her anymore, but she appeared to be just as a matured woman of her age should be. She should be at least twenty-four by now. To think he got to see her so swiftly after coming to the future, but she also said things that made him wonder.

Who was this Lou she mentioned? And from what that shitty woman, Lal Mirch, called her earlier… she should be the Storm Guardian of the Lotus. Does that mean Maeko has her own set of guardians now?

Lal Mirch moved down a little, opening her tan cloak and popping open a box ring. She pulled out what looked like a miniature hot air balloon for surveillance.

"Hey! How long do we have to keep moving? We still haven't reached the base?" Gokudera glared over at Lal Mirch, irritated at how long they've been going at this.

Lal Mirch looked over at the teens. "We're camping out here today." This shocked the teens. "You guys can't see in the dark, and it's too dangerous. Honesty, it's really annoying."

"Bitch… don't you think you're pushing it!?"

"That's my line." Lal Mirch drew her weapon.

"Now, now," Aiko said, appearing out of nowhere and pushed Lal Mirch's weapon down. This surprised the two boys how swiftly she went from where she stood earlier, a down further to not be able to stop her, to behind Lal Mirch to push her weapon down. "Let's play nice with each other." She smiled again. "After all, we're all comrades with a common goal." She glanced over at Lal Mirch, her gaze shifting drastically to a glare. "And you know while I'm here, you abide by the Lotus rules. You're in no condition to play with me."

Gokudera swallowed a little and Tsuna was nervous. This Aiko definitely was different from the one they're use to. Bubbly personality and she had that childishness that they were used to. However, this woman proved that the past ten years has drastically changed her.

She felt like someone who was meant to be in Mafia.

Lal Mirch scoffed. "I'm preparing my own food." She knelt down to prepare her own food, ignoring the glare she had received from Aiko. It was a silent surrender, but the teens took notice that she obeyed.

Aiko sighed softly. "I'll be back in a bit then." She smiled a little. "I'll forge a bit. You two can wait here if you want." She glances over at the two, winking directly at Gokudera. Shivers went up his spine and he looked at her shocked. Aiko giggled at his reaction, walking off into the forest and left the two boys alone with Lal Mirch.

"Go get your own food," Lal Mirch curtly said. "Aiko babying you won't help at all." She glared at Gokudera. "Particularly you, failure of a right-hand man, Gokudera Hayoto. Aiko is far superior since she at least keeps Lou alive."

That was a server blow to Gokudera's ego, and he went off. Tsuna left too, knowing that no matter what he said he wouldn't get any answers from her. For now they'll try foraging a bit…

**||| ### ||| Later in the evening by the fire ||| ### |||**

Tsuna and Gokudera were shivering by the fire, clothes drenched from their attempt to forage on their own to accidentally see a grown woman naked. By the time Aiko came back her, her coat was placed on a nearby branch and she returned with various edible mushrooms and some berries. The boys couldn't quite explain to her, so they just said they were thankful the two women gathered enough food for all of them.

"Aiko," Lal Mirch said, making the boys jump. "I think it's time we explain to them." She glances at the peeping boys who caught her naked. "All I know about you guys from photos I've seen." She set finished the fish she was eating.

"We do have the time now," Aiko commented. She sighed softly as she popped berry into her mouth. "Let's tell them what we know." She glances at Lal Mirch.

Lal Mirch sat there, staring off into the distance. She informed Tsuna and Gokudera she was a part of CEDEF, the same organization Tsuna's father was in. "The whole of Vongola is currently in a state of emergency. I agreed to investigate the situation and check out the condition of the tenth's family."

"State of emergency…?"

"Correct," said Aiko. "The Izumi family was worried, so we asked CEDEF to investigate since we couldn't get contact with you all."

"The Vongola Headquarters… fell two days ago and was destroyed." This news shocked the teens. "Currently, there are no survivors from headquarters, and the ninth's unaccounted for. The CEDEF team hurried to the rescue, but we lost contact."

"Don't be fooled, tenth," shouted Gokudera. "I knew she was talking bullshit. How can the great Vongola be destroyed!? We have many families backing us, including the Izumi family!"

"Maybe not ten years ago…" Aiko said, looking down. "It's different now."

"Yes…" Lal Mirch looked at the two boys. "But in this time, there are families who can do it. The _Millefiore_ family. The boss's name is _Byakuran_." Lal Mirch went into further explanation about why Millefiore invaded, explaining it was the Vongola Rings they were after but for a very different reason. A reason because the powers lying dormant in the rings were beyond human comprehension.

"Wait! What about Maeko!?" Gokudera looked at Lal Mirch and then to Aiko. "The Izumi family wouldn't allow such an invasion, right?"

Aiko looked away. "Their boss… Byakuran… He had a private meeting with Maeko a few months back." She held onto her arm, a visible look of pain and sadness on her face. "He… broke her spirit… She couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, and it became apparent she was mentally unable to do much for Vongola." She looks at Gokudera. "So… We sent her to the one place to help her." She sighs. "Not even boss-kun was around. He was doing work at the time… I'm certain he felt awful he wasn't there for her."

"Boss-kun…?" Tsuna looked puzzled.

Aiko looked at him. "Oh, Maeko's married, so we refer to her husband as Boss-kun and her Boss-chan." She smiled a little and played with a ring on her hand. "It was Kagami's idea. After all, her brother Kenji, who was killed in his twin's stead, thought of the nickname."

Lal Mirch sighed. "She was a complete mess… thankfully that boot camp snapped her back some." She glanced up, seeing one of the fuses on her drone had become lit. She got up quickly, grabbing a bag of sand and putting it over the fire.

"What the hell are you doing!?"

Aiko shot up, looking at the drone and grimaces. "Enemies are in bound."

"Now's not the time to get emotional," lectured Lal Mirch. "These guys are strong! If they find us, it'll probably be over!" This shocked the boys who got swiftly dressed, Aiko taking the rear of the group. Lal Mirch had her goggles on to see into the darkness. "That one's a scout. In that case, the stealth ring will get us past."

Walking through the forest was a Gola Mosca.

"That's the second generation Gola-shell… Strau Mosca. The Military has been selling secrets of it's black projects to other families aside from the Vongola."

It appeared the machine was turning, until it whipped it's head right back around. The only reason it would do that if a ring was uncovered. That's when Tsuna showed her Lancia's ring. Just as the machine was going to fire, the group a ways from base, something shout out behind it to strike at it's head.

"_Attaco Di Squalo_," said a voice of a man. "I bet I can get a point off this guy." Sword drawing back to land on his back, the man looks and aura hadn't change much over the years. Yamamoto Takaeshi, Rain Guardian of Vongola Decimo. "The pinch hitter has arrived. Made you worried, eh, Aiko?"

"Yamamoto! Thank goodness," Aiko walked out from behind the teens and smiled at him.

He smiled at her. "You forgot most of your boxes at base. You were careless this time around." Aiko had a sweat dropped behind her head and she had a nervous laugh. Tsuna's and Gokudera's jaw's dropped at hearing this. She forgot her weapons at the base? How could she be so careless and yet still hold up the rear?

"Yeah… just had the two mist box with me, but I was in a hurry. Lou and boss-kun would be having my head." She gratefully accepted the other five ring boxes, shoving them into her coat pocket.

Obviously the boys were shocked that they got to see Yamamoto. He only came to pick up Lal Mirch, but it appeared he got a few more people to come with him.

"Hm… except you two shrunk? Maybe… an illusion? Or demons?"

Tsuna scratched the back of his head. "Um… because of the ten-year bazooka, we're from the past…" He didn't know if Yamamoto would know this.

"Ahh! I see! From back then! Of course… I should've known." Yamamoto still had his usual grin. He gave a serious look before speaking again. "No wonder… aren't you looking well, Tsuna." This left the two boys speechless. "Anyways, let's go. Having guys like these as our opponents is no laughing matter."

The group of five began to move, and Tsuna filled Yamamoto in about what recently went on in the past, or the present time rather.

"How nostalgic!" Yamamoto grinned, surprising Tsuna that it was like he was talking to the Yamamoto from his time. "Since then, many things have happened." This caused a little silence before he gave another happy look, propping his elbow onto Tsuna's head since he was shorter. "Oh yeah! You've been awesome these past ten years, Tsuna!" He glanced behind him to a quiet Gokudera. "You too, Gokudera."

"Hey… aren't we running? It'll take until morning if we walk." Lal Mirch pointed out.

"Oh, right…" Aiko blinked a little and looked at Yamamoto. "The location that was given to you was false, Lal Mirch. I contacted Yamamoto that I would make certain Goku-kun returned to base when he left that time so all of us were there when you arrive."

Lal Mirch looked surprised at Aiko. "My bad. I told her to not divert you from your path if she met up with you, that way I can take over and show the way as I was instructed to." He looked at Lal Mirch. "We're almost there." That's when Yamamoto started to pick up the speed of his walk. "Keep up, and don't lose sight of me. Aiko, you know what to do."

"Rodger," she said, keeping the rear.

Yamamoto pulled out an old box, sticking a lit blue flame ring into it. Shooting out of the box, a bird coated in rain flames flew around in a circle and Yamamoto stood calmly while this all happened.

"What's this!?"

"It's defensive camouflage. Don't look away," said Yamamoto.

Just then, a droplet of water hit Tsuna's cheek. One droplet turned into a sudden downpour, causing most to shield their eyes. Aiko had pulled out an umbrella from jacket, it faintly glowed a little as she stood behind them.

"This way," called Yamamoto. Aiko gently pushed their backs and lead the boys towards where Yamamoto was standing. He was on the stairs, looking up at them. "We're going down." As they headed down the steps, Yamamoto explained there are currently six entrances to this underground base. This excluded the tunnel linking a hideout that the Izumi made for Vongola. Tsuna was surprised Vongola made this, but Yamamoto, while ruffling Tsuna's hair, informed him he was the one made it.

Gokudera spotted something odd in front of the doorway. "Hey, what's that device for?

"Ah, Gianni's invention," Aiko said, clapping.

"Mn. It's some sort of disruption barrier," Yamamoto replied. "Reminds me, you don't have that in the Izumi base, right?"

Aiko shook her head. "No, we don't which is why we've moved here to this base. There's plenty of room for us, so the guardians of Izumi, the Lotus, should be coming soon too."

Yamamoto smiled. "Ah, nice! Get to see Ryuji and Kamgi again, along with Maemi." He looked at her as the four walked through with Lal Mirch at the rear. "The sun guardian, Regina, was it? And then there's the cloud guardian, Lila. Oh and that feisty Thunder guardian, Isamu Fukashima, and his brother."

Just as Lal Mirch walked through the barrier, she fell down onto the floor.

"Hey! What happened!?" Gokudera lean over her.

"Not her too," said Yamamoto.

"What's going on!?" Tsuna was beyond confused.

"Don't worry about it. Her body just went into shock from the big change in the environment. Since for her kind, this artificial environment is different from outside." Yamamoto picked her up.

"Her kind…?" Tsuna looked over at Aiko to see if she would answer his question, finding that she had vanished somewhere. His jaw dropped. _She's swifter than a coming storm. She comes and goes... and I wouldn't even notice until she's already gone…_

"She'll wake up in a bit." Yamamoto walked further down the corridor, and opened up a door.

"You're late," came a familiar voice. Tsuna turned his head, shocked to hear it "Ciaossu."

"Re… Reborn…" Tsuna went to his side, a hand outstretched in uncertainty.

"Hug me "

Tsuna stared at it a little confused.

"Over here," said Reborn, delivering a harsh kick to the back of Tsuna's head. Just like old times…Tsuna grabbed his head in pain from the kick. "The back of your head was made for the arch of my foot," stated Reborn.

"What!? What the hell!? Why the messed-up reunion!?" Tsuna had tears in his eyes, shocked that Reborn would do something like that. "Here I was, thinking I was gonna die trying to find you…! And you're wearing weird clothes again!" However despite his complaining, Tsuna was really glad he was alright.

"Can't help it, these suits are keeping my health from deteriorating. That outside barrier was also built for my sake." That's when Reborn shed some light onto the situation. The ten year bazooka didn't send them ten years into the past, but rather nine years and ten months into the future. A strange thing considering the circumstances behind the weapon. First was them staying stuck in the future, now they're not even exactly ten years in the time zone.

"Where are we?" Tsuna looked over at Yamamoto who showed that Namimori middle school on the monitor in the room. They were still in Japan.

"Currently every base of the Vongola's closest associates have been attacked simultaneously all over the world. Of course, it's going on here too," said Yamamoto. "The Vongola Hunts has made it this far."

"Vongola…"

"Hunts…?" Gokudera finished Tsuna's question.

"You guys must have also seen it. The coffin with the Vongola Crest?" Reborn looked at them.

"So that means that I'm…!?"

Gokudera gritted his teeth. "You bastard!" He punched Yamamoto has hard as he could. "What have you done!? Why is the tenth like that," demanded Gokudera.

"I'm sorry," said Yamamoto apologetically. He looked sadden by this.

"Asshole! 'Sorry' just won't cut it!"

"Stop it, Goku-kun," said Aiko, who reappeared in the room. She moved closer to the two in case to restrain Gokudera from brawling anymore with Yamamoto about this matter.

"She's right. You were also here in the future," stated Reborn.

Gokudera looked over at Aiko. "What about Maeko! She's suppose to protect the tenth if the enemy wishes to take his life! Isn't that the oath Izumi keeps with Vongola!?" Gokudera didn't want to think that Maeko wasn't mentally capable like Aiko said.

"Goku-kun… Mae-chan…" She looked away, unable to find the right way to explain it.

Yamamoto held his hand up, halting Aiko from saying anymore and grimaced. "Don't force yourself, Aiko… It 's been tough on everyone after hearing what happened to Maeko." He looked over at Gokudera. "Minoru was shattered into splinters before her very eyes… They made certain she wasn't mentally able to do a thing for him…" He looked away. "Her husband was out at the time… There was nothing her guardians could do to cheer her up. That sword was the only link to her deceased family…" Yamamoto looked deeply sadden he couldn't stop this either. "Byakuran made certain he ripped the one thing she held dear. Minoru was the only thing she cherished because it had been passed down to her from her loving grandmother."

Gokudera hung his head at hearing this. Even Maeko, an ally to Vongola, was prevented from saving Tsuna. He heard from Aiko she was distressed, but she didn't dare reveal the complete details. Now he couldn't blame her because that was a tough bit of information to swallow.

"Minoru… destroyed?" Tsuna looked at Yamamoto.

Aiko walked over to the computer, bringing up a picture and looked at him. "This is the picture we took of the remains… I don't dare show them when Mae-chan is here…" She looked away from the screen, her gaze firmly on the ground. Tsuna and Gokudera looked at the monitor, seeing Minoru's sheath and hilt there. However, the rest of the sword, the blade itself, was in tiny slivers; fragments of the sword it once used to be. A sadden state of the sword they saw not just two days ago in their time used to seal Joben into a personal hell.

Tsuna paled. "No… no way…." Seeing Minoru like this, he could understand why Maeko suddenly became mentally unstable. That sword was everything to her, everyone could tell because she carried with her always, and her husband probably knew the importance of the sword before he married her.

"That means…" Gokudera gritted his teeth, knowing fully well that Maeko treasured that sword.

"Our enemies, The Millefiore Family, certainly have a monstrous fighting strength. However, what's even worse is their purpose is not only to get the rings and conquer," said Reborn.

"When headquarters was surrounded," Yamamoto said, "Millefiore prepared to sit down and negotiate with a summoned spokesman for the Vongola. But those guys didn't sit down to negotiate, and that poor guy was killed." This surprised the two, and Aiko stood silently while Yamamoto gave them harsh reality update of this time. "After that, they ignored all our calls for a ceasefire. They're picking us off one by one… their goal being… to eliminate every single one of the Vongola."

This made the two draw a horrible conclusion if everyone that had connections with Vongola was being eliminated.

"Then that means!"

"Don't panic. We're not without hope," stated Reborn. "Yamamoto, Aiko," he said, looking at the two. "The family's guardians haven't been confirmed as dead, correct?"

"Correct, they haven't been confirmed dead yet." Aiko smiled a little. "Millefiore made a mistake allowing Mae-chan to live. Their goal was to use her as bait for a specific Vongola member she married." She gave a sadistic smile. "Once boss-kun returns, I'm certain he'll give them just desserts after all. No one messes with his lovely wife."

"Then there's only one thing left to do. You must assemble the six scattered guardians," stated Reborn.

Gokudera glanced over at Aiko. "By the way… who's Maeko's husband?" This was a first time he heard that she was to someone in Vongola. This person must have a rank in the family, so who did she marry? Who in Vongola did their enemy want to bait?

Aiko glanced at Gokudera, holding a hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh. "Sorry, to be more specific, she's married to one of the six guardians." She smiled at him. "Can you guess which lucky gent got her hand?"

Gokudera's jaw dropped along with Tsuna's at this. He was shocked that she would even play mind games with him. He couldn't picture himself with Maeko, and she only said guardians. That completely ruled Tsuna out of this whole thing.

"Aiko, stop teasing and let them get some sleep." Yamamoto looked at her before looking at Tsuna and Gokudera. "I'll show you guys where you can sleep, follow me." Yamamoto led the way, leaving Aiko alone with Reborn.

"You do realize once he finds out you're dating with him, his future self, his mind's going to be shot," said Reborn. He asked Aiko details of what was going on in this time era, which included dating and marriage, if the guardians of Tsuna are got into a relationship. He needed to know incase those who were in relationships got targeted in the Vongola Hunts.

Aiko smiled softly and glanced down at the Izumi family ring on her finger. "It's fine…" She closed her eyes. "My Goku-kun won't let that bit of trivia bother him too much during this time. Any other time, if we weren't in a dire situation, he'd be shocked and swinging his arms around trying to understand the logic of him and I together." She looked at Reborn, a sadden smile gracing her features.

Reborn felt bad for her, knowing that she couldn't tell Gokudera she was his girlfriend in this time. To be so close, yet torn apart because the Gokudera was his younger self… Aiko is just teasing him to lessen her pain at the moment. Until the moment when her Gokudera returns to her side, she'll have to make due with teasing his younger self.

Aiko sighed softly, shaking her head to rid herself of sadden thoughts and glances at the baby hitman. "The same when he finds out a certain guardian is married to my boss."

Reborn frowned a little. "I'm surprised they're married."

Aiko laughed. "Surprising indeed, that's my boss, or Boss-kun, for ya. He got them hitched once she was out of school, not a moment later. He had been planning it since her third year of high school, he's devoted." She smiled at Reborn. "He does his job perfectly and still maintains a good loving relationship with her."

Reborn smiled a little. "Guess we'll see when the two come together. She's on her way, correct?"

Aiko nodded. "Aye, I sent a message to all Lotus members to be wary due to the Vongola Hunts and if they see the Guardians to send them instantly back here. Regina, our Sun Guardian, is already here with me." She gave fierce glare, the ring on her finger glowing brightly red under the chains. "The Izumi family is backing Vongola all the way. We're not scared of death from this Millefiore family. I say _bring it_, and see what deadly jungle cat comes out of blooming Lotus." She turned away from the baby hitman. "Our bonds are true and strong, nothing can break them. Millefiore has no idea the slumbering beast it stirred," and she walked out of the room.

Reborn smirked at seeing Aiko like this. She was looking more like a member of mafia than anything else, and he had a sinking feeling her ability would perfectly suit her. "Good call, Maeko… Let's see your other guardian's match up to my standards…" Her guardians must be perfect to protect her, and that included all of them. Certainly those Lotus Guardians will arrive on their own, for now, the main focus was gathering Tsuna's guardians.

**||| ### ||| The following morning… ||| ### |||**

Lal Mirch storms past Tsuna and Gokudera as they returned to the room where they were in last night, overhearing the last bit of Lal Mirch and Reborn's conversation dealing with Colonnello. Tsuna wasn't ready to being looking for the guardians yet. He was worried about Kyoko, Haru, I-pin… all of them were out there and being hunted down because they were knew someone in Vongola. Even Maeko might be hunted down now. However, it was Reborn who reminded him that gathering the remainder of the guardians was so they can protect Kyoko and the others.

"It's going to be fine, tenth," said Gokudera with a smile. "I-Pin can do it! They'll come back safely, for sure!"

"Gokudera-kun…"

"Let's begin then. I was discussing it with Yamamoto. The guardian we need first is someone who is ready to fight… the strongest, which means _that_ guy…"

"When you say 'strong,' you mean…" Tsuna realized who he meant, the only guardian that fit the bill perfectly.

"That's correct."

The strongest of Vongola Decimo's guardians, the cloud guardian, Hibari Kyoya. Despite Gokudera competing with Hibari on the title of the strongest, and failing, Tsuna realized he'd feel a little braver if he was around. Apparently, no one knew where Hibari was.

"Eh, would Maeko's team know?"

Yamamoto sighed. "Don't know. I was also gone for a good long time, so now I have no idea where that guy is. This is the only lead we have." Yamamoto showed a picture to the two.

It was Hibird. Despite that, Tsuna wasn't overly positive about leaving outside with Reborn. Because of what's going on outside, Reborn's health was in danger.

"You sure Aiko or Maeko doesn't know his whereabouts? I thought they kept track of Mafia?" Gokudera looked puzzled.

"Ever since the incident, Izumi has watched the other families to a point. Besides," Aiko's voice came from the entrance. Both Gokudera and Tsuna turned, jaws dropping and turning redder than any tomato in shock to see what she was wearing. "Hibari Kyoya, he has permission from Boss-chan to float around as he pleases. He checks in regularly, but this time he hasn't checked in. We're not aware of his current location but I have a feeling he'll be returning."

"Returning?" Tsuna seemed to find his tongue despite his face just as red as Gokudera's.

Aiko smirked a little. "Aye, I'm pretty certain Boss-chan told him to return to Namimori because the hunts going on here. Would make sense he came here after hearing that, no? After all, the Vongola Hunts disturbs the peace here and I'm positive the two split responsibility of who keeps the peace here."

The two teen boys were a little speechless, turning their gazes anywhere else aside from Aiko.

"Yamamoto will accompany you guys. He's familiar with the combat style of this era." Reborn glanced at the door to see Aiko draped in a robe, loosely as if she rolled out of bed. Her hair was a muss and she looked rather provocative the way she leaned against the doorframe. "Aiko will stay here. That way she can keep watch over the base, and tear anyone apart who comes in."

"Understood, Reborn." Aiko stepped inside and plopped into a nearby chair. "Should I send Regina with them? She's been complaining that I've kept her housed up and she's withering." She held her hands up to 'Quote' the sun guardian that belonged to Maeko's group. "I have get out of this place! I'm the sun! I have to be bright, bubbly! And you cannot hold me in this dank place! Let me go ooooouuuuutttt~!" She chuckles and smiles. "Eccentric much, but that's Regina for you, darling of Lussuria."

Gokudera sweat dropped at hearing that last part while he was keeping his gaze on Reborn and Yamamoto. He didn't understand how a woman could be Lussuria's darling, considering the man was flirting with Ryohei during their fight… Was there a secret behind why Regina was Lussuria's darling? _Don't think about it, you'll get scarred…_ he warned himself. Bad enough Aiko came in the ways she did, he didn't need to think on the Varia Sun Guardian's freakish habits.

Just have to keep his gaze anywhere but Aiko… he didn't need a replay of what happened with Lal Mirch in the forest.

"Ah… even so…" Tsuna seemed uncertain, even more so with leaving Aiko alone in the base. She didn't look combat ready, and then there was the mishap yesterday. Was she really a guardian of Maeko?

"Whaaat? There's nothing to be afraid of!" Yamamoto was all smiles. "Aren't you guys carrying an amazing power this era's family has lost?" This surprised both teens since they had no idea. "A hope that you guys… brought with you." Yamamoto looked over at the two with a grin. "I mean, the Vongola Rings."

Before the boys could ask about what he meant, Aiko smiled. "Time to get going! Can't be wasting time and all. I'll have Regina meet you all at that location in a bit, Yamamoto."

Yamamoto smiled. "Great! Gotta catch up with her anyways, and I'm sure she'll watch our backs."

She glanced over at Reborn. "Nee, Reborn, want me to cook something? I haven't eaten yet."

"Sounds like a plan to me," said Reborn as Yamamoto ushered the shocked Gokudera and Tsuna out of the room to go look for Hibari.

**||| ### ||| In the Remains of the Factory in Block 5 ||| ### |||**

Yamamoto walked out of the building door frame, or the remains of one, followed by Gokudera and Tsuna.

"It's here…" Gokudera asked.

"Sure is," replied Yamamoto. "The remains of the factory in block five… one of the six entrances are here."

"Hey," snapped Gokudera, "what happened to the Vongola Rings!?"

"Anyways, let's go to Nami Middle school."

Gokudera wasn't going to let the subject drop. He also had a feeling this 'Regina' will be appearing sooner or later. So he best as his questions before this pest came, he needed to do it now. "Hey did you hear me!? The Vongola Rings! Why aren't they in this time!?"

"Oh," Yamamoto said, turning his head to the teens as they walked. "That story, huh? Sometime back, the rings were smashed and thrown away." This shocked the teens considering that in their time, they suffered so much to get them.

"Who the hell would do that!?" Gokudera had to know. If it was Maeko, he'd give her hell.

Yamamoto kept walking, turning his head once more to give a serious look for the answer. "Our boss did."

"That means!" Tsuna had a paled face, shocked at hearing this. "Possibly…?!"

"The tenth!?"

Yamamoto laughed a little. "There were some among the guardians who objected. But, Tsuna refused to five in." Yamamoto's words received silence from the teens that were in utter shock. All that hard work, all that suffering to only find out that in a few years they'd be destroyed and thrown away.

"I… why did I do such a thing," asked Tsuna.

Yamamoto laughed at this too. "Tsuna spoke of destroying the Vongola rings in order to change us. Among the mafia, there was a lot of fuss about the importance of the rings… another battle to take them loomed near…" Yamamoto gave a sadden smile, thinking about the Tsuna he served along with; the one who died. "You were probably thinking it's best to not fan the flames of battle, right? That's just the sort of man you are… even to the point of doubting the reason the Vongola exist for."

Silenced followed by the two, uncertain of what to say.

Yamamoto just kept talking. "Still, even now, we're heavily relying on the rings." He held up his right hand where his rings were held. "I'll train you guys like it's some intensive baseball camp!"

Tsuna frowned at this. "By the way, Yamamoto… how's baseball?"

At this time, however, Yamamoto looked shocked not due to the question but rather the explosion up ahead. Smoke flooded the empty spaces in between the building and voices could be heard.

"This way!"

"Hurry!"

Tsuna noticed right away two figures similar. Two shapes he knew due to the ten year bazooka going off on the children in his house. "Lambo and I-pin!" There were to shadows that were following the two, more than likely following them to safety.

"Someone else is with them…!" Yamamoto could see the shapes along with the other two.

"You mean… _no way_!" Tsuna seemed to be in disbelief. "That person is…!?"

"Kyoko-san! Haru-san! Run!" I-pin and Lambo took a defensive stance despite the blowing of the wind. "Leave this to me!"

"Maeko said she'll be as soon as she can! We have to hold on!"

"But," objected one of the girls.

Red flames struck at a nearby barrel, causing it to fall down and obscure where the girls were at, they screamed. Kyoko and Haru were in danger.

"Up there!" Gokudera turned his gaze towards the sky to see two people floating above. Wearing black uniforms, White shoulder pads with a strange emblem on them, these two men were using storm flames to stay afloat.

"Give them the finishing blow," said the dark skinned one. He held a scythe in his hand, coated with nothing but storm flames.

"Leave it to me, bro," replied the white haired man who stood with his hands in his pockets.

The battles to protect those precious to Tsuna begins!

**||| ### |||**

"Black spell," exclaimed Yamamoto.

"Kyoko-chan and the others," Tsuna said, worried about them.

"Let's go! Remove the Mammon's chain from the Vongola rings." This surprised the two at his orders. Yamamoto knew he couldn't wait for Regina's back up. He had to act now, and when Regina would provide perfect backup. She was a strong as both Ryohei and Lussuria since she was trained by the two. He managed to hear Lambo mention Maeko coming, which shouldn't be possible unless she had a feeling of coming soon.

From what Yamamoto knew Maeko was over in Italy. She shouldn't be back in Japan yet, not for another day or two.

"I accept your challenge!" The man with long white hair grinned. "Don't interfere, Tazaru-aniki." He looked over at the other member of Black Spell.

"Don't screw up, Nosaru," commented Tazaru.

Lambo and I-pin both stood protectively of both Haru and Kyoko.

"Don't panic, Lambo," said I-pin, noticing he was starting to. "I'll leave Kyoko and Haru to you!"

"It's too reckless with your body like that, I-pin!" Lambo must have known that I-pin took too much damage to have said that.

Nosaru slammed is ring into his ring box, a black scythe shooting out into his hands. "Here I come! My prey!" He slashed the air vertically, his flames slamming into the ground where the four where at. The two Millefiore Black Spells charged, and Nosaru noticed a shadow moving. "You, in the shadows. I'll have your heads!" He swung his scythe wildly, and the handle of the scythe hit the edge of Yamamoto's sword.

This surprised I-pin and Lambo, seeing reinforcements to swiftly.

"Aniki," Nosaru glanced up at him. "Who is this guy?"

"He _might_ be on the hit list." Tazaru appeared to not care that much. "I mean, how am I suppose to remember everyone I'm going to kill?"

"For sure," exclaimed the Black spell member. He sent a torrent of swipes at Yamamoto who appeared to have dodge or evade the attacks in some way. "What's with this guy!? My dark scythe!"

"Let's do this…" Yamamoto looked seriously, one of his rings glowing blue as he got into the eighth form of Shigure Souen Ryuu, his sword held behind him as he started to place his hand onto the hilt.

"Get out of there, Nosaru!" The warning calm in the nick of time, Yamamoto swung his sword and delivered a swift slash at Nosaru's abdomen with _Shino Tsukuame_. However, it wasn't deep enough for Yamamoto's liking. The white haired Black Spell member flew back, huffing as he realized at how close he was.

"I heard the Vongola have two swords masters… he must be…" Tazaru must have realized who Yamamoto was now.

Tsuna and Gokudera rushed over to I-Pin and Lambo, to check on them as well as everyone with them. "Is everyone okay," yelled Tsuna in worry.

"Keep it together!" Gokudera ran towards Lambo who appeared to stagger.'

"Vongola! Mr. Gokudera!" Lambo seemed happy to see them.

"Didn't I tell you…" This voice surprised the two boys. "Tsuna will definitely come rescue us?" Haru had shorter hair, but she had definitely grown more feminine over the past nine years. However, as soon as she saw both Gokudera and Tsuna. "Hah! Haru… seems to have gotten taller all of the sudden!" Yet her personality hadn't change over the years. "Huh… Wonder if Maeko shrank too…" She frowned a little in pondering. "Hope not, I think her hubby would be extra mad and bite her if she did shrink suddenly." She giggled at their shocked reaction.

Maeko's husband has a biting habit? Sounded faintly familiar to the two, yet they didn't think about at the moment nor wanted to question her.

"How disrespectful!" Nosura was beyond angry. "How dare you ruin the shirt that matches with my brother's!" He sliced the air, releasing another wave of Storm flames. Yamamoto acted swiftly, opening another ring box and the storm flames hit a water wall. "What!?"

"A water barrier…!"

"You guys, remember this well." Yamamoto had a small sadden smile. "The rings have the power to open these boxes."

"I see! So, that's what you do with the opening on this thing," asked Gokudera.

"Where did you get that?" Yamamoto was surprised Gokudera had a ring box in his hand.

"It was in the briefcase belongs to my future self." Yamamoto stated that the future Gokudera managed to find a powerful ring box. However, when Gokudera tried nothing happened.

Yamamoto laughed at this. "There isn't just blood in the human body. There are things you can't see with the naked eye. We also have life energy coursing through our bodies in the form of pulses or _Hadou_." He went into further explanation of Hadou, there are seven of them. Upon harmonizing with the ring, the Hadou passes through it. Converting it and producing high density energy. In other word, the dying will flame. Dying Will Flames were the very thing that Xanxus, Tsuna, and Maeko used whenever they fought. Except in this time it was used more frequently thanks to the creation of ring box weapons that needed the flames to open them.

Yamamoto used the same ring box again, a bird covered in blue flames shooting out and striking against Nosura's shoulder.

"So powerful," exclaimed Tsuna.

"What was that…?" Gokudera didn't see the form of the box ring weapon.

"He really is… the Vongola guardian of the rain." Tazaru seemed to have finally let that bit of information sink in.

I-pin was glancing around, taking notice that there was someone missing. "Oh… oh no! Kyoko is missing!" I-pin glanced around to spot Kyoko and not finding her.

"What!?" Lambo looked over at her in shocked as well as Tsuna when he heard this.

"It could have been… that blast just now…!"

"No… no way!" Tsuna couldn't believe that. If that was true, where could have Kyoko gone?

"Let's not just to conclusions! Go look for her, Tsuna. I'll handle things here!" Yamamoto spared a glance over to Tsuna.

"Eh?" Tsuna turned away. "Uh, okay! Got it!" He gave one more look at his friend before darting off to find Kyoko. Unfortunately for Nosaru, the blue flamed bird was too fast for him to hit let alone escape from it.

"I'm taking back what I said Nosaru." Tazaru released a large amount of storm flames on his scythe, creating black flames. "Recently, I've been doing nothing but boring ass assignments. It's been a _long_ time since I ran into a major player… so I can't just pass this up. Let me give you a hand!" He slashed his weapon vertically, sending the blast of flames towards Tsuna. It hit the ground, sending the teen flying into a window and crashing. Lucky for Tsuna, he landed on something somewhat soft.

"Everyone…" Tsuna had rolled off the pile and sat up, panting a little. "It should be okay with Yamamoto there…" He looked around. "Kyoko-chan!" He figured she too was blow away like that, and continued calling her as he ran around the building. He couldn't think of what would happen to her… The girl he was in love with, if something happened to her. He was already tearing up just thinking about it.

He rounded a corner, spotting a long haired woman who looked strangely like Kyoko. Tusna turned his head, realizing she saw him crying and was embarrassed.

"Thank you. You're here, Tsu-kun," said Kyoko. Her calling him Tsu-kun seemed to make him even more embarrassed. "I'm sorry but… I think I've sprain my ankle." She was wearing a white dress and wearing a jacket too, her legs were crossed in a way to ensure no one got to see what was under the dress.

"Oh," exclaimed Tsuna, wondering if she was alright.

"What is this…? It's sort of nostalgic…" Kyoko gazed at Tsuna. "It reminds me of when we were younger." She smiled a little. "I wonder… If I see Mae-chan, I'll get that feeling too. She's been away for so long, I missed how she used to be."

However, the nostalgia ended swiftly by a voice. "I don't take prisoners." It was Tazaru floating above the two. "So I'll make this quick. After all, I can't keep my main meal, the rain guardian, waiting." Obviously this Black Spell had no idea who Tsuna just by sight alone because if he was well informed….

He would have known that Tsuna was the main course given he was the tenth boss of Vongola.

"Get back," exclaimed Tsuna as he got in front of Kyoko.

"Tsu-kun…" Kyoko gripped his sleeve, scared of the Millefiore Black spell that loomed above them.

He had to protect her, there was no other way! Despite his trembling, Tsuna gout out the Dying Will pills Basil gave him. "I… I won't let you…. There's no way I'll let you…"

**||| ### |||**

Nosaru realized that most dodged Tazaru's attack. "Damn it. If it wasn't for that sword!"

Gokudera kept trying to place his ring into the box, not understanding why it wasn't working. "Why isn't it happening!? Is it broken!?"

"Imagine a flame, Gokudera," said Yamamoto. "Try to picture your dying will as a flame. Imagine your determination as a flame."

"My determination as a flame?" Gokudera seemed puzzled.

In the distance, a voice was heard and Yamamoto recognized it while keeping his gaze on his attacker. Regina, Maeko's Sun Guardian, was nearby; he could hear her voice in the distance shouting loudly. Very loudly to the point he could make out that she was swearing and cussing out whomever it was attacking her. Did they manage to destroy her outfit again?

That would be the only thing to trigger such a violent outbursts. Relatively, she wasn't one for using 'vulgar' language since she claims to be a lady.

Only a lady until someone ruins her favorite outfits…

"You can do it. In fact, you already have!" Yamamoto moved his sword in front of himself. "But… let me handle this… I'm worried about Tsuna. So back down, Gokudera."

That earned him a "bastard" from Gokudera. "You shit, acting all cool! It's only because you have ten year head start!"

Yamamoto grinned at him.

"Fine, I'll let you have it your way, but just this once. Just you wait, I'll show you."

"Oh…" Yamamoto turned back around, rather serious look on his face as he tossed his two ring boxes up into the air. "This will decide it." However, a cloud of smoke covered over Yamamoto before he could catch them. Gokudera turned his head back to look at him, only to spot the younger Yamamoto from his time there.

"Hmm?" Baseball bat in hand, an energy drink held in his mouth, and the ring boxes fell behind him as he looked ahead confused.

"Wha—Whaaaaaaaatttttt!?"

This wasn't good…

That caused a chain even of clouds of smoke. Gokudera turned to see Haru, I-pin, and even Lambo also came to this time from the present ten years ago. With Tsuna, Kyoko was looking on worried.

**||| ### |||**

"Tsu-kun…" Then she was enveloped in smoke, the younger past self of Kyoko sitting behind Tsuna. "Tsuna-kun…?"

"What!?" Tsuna was beyond confused on how adult Kyoko reverted back to her usual teen self. At the moment, he didn't think about the ten year bazooka being the source of all this trouble.

"Tsuna! Thank god!" Kyoko smiled, grabbing his arm like she finally caught him.

"Eh!?" He turned completely to Kyoko; enough for his body was to face her. "W-why is the younger Kyoko here!? What happened!?"

Kyoko smiled at him. "Everyone's been looking for you! And for Reborn and Gokudera too!" She giggled when thinking about what Maeko, she was pretty angry he just suddenly disappeared. "Mae-chan said if she found you first, she'd give you seventy licks of her whip for causing so much trouble if Reborn didn't have a punishment."

Tsuna sweat drop at hearing this. Sweet mother of mercy! He didn't want Maeko to find him then if she was going to just whip him!

Kyoko glanced around, realizing she didn't know where they were at. "Huh? Where are we…?"

A wave of storm flames covered in black flames flew at the two, and Tsuna pushed Kyoko out of the way to protect her from the attack. It hit spot on where Tsuna was at, he was lying motionless while Kyoko sat stunned that she had blood on her arm before seeing Tsuna on the ground.

"Ah! Tsuna!" She got up and ran over to him in worry.

"It's your turn, little lady." Tazaru was still floating above the two, and Kyoko looked up at him in surprise. "Don't you think… killing a little girl is just like cutting grass?" He gazed down at her, unremorseful of what he was saying. "You don't feel a thing as they're sliced… and it's over before you know it. Don't worry, there's nothing to be afraid of." The flames fathered on his weapon started to become stronger. "It'll be over in a second."

Kyoko sat shocked before Tazaru sent another slash of flames her way. Kyoko covered her head and screamed, scared of what was going to happen.

The attack was a hit; however, Tazaru didn't see the speed of which his attack was avoided. Landing behind Tazaru, Tsuna was holding Kyoko in his arms. He was in his Hyper Will mode and Kyoko was surprised. "Tsu…na?"

Tsuna turned his head, and Kyoko remembered something Maeko told her once.

"_If neither your brother nor I'm around, Kyoko-chan, rely on Tsuna."_ _Maeko turned and smiled softly at her. "I believe in him. He'll protect you with all he has! So if you're in danger… go find Tsuna."_

"That flame… it's color is the same attribute as the sky…" Tazaru seemed impressed. He only heard a handful of people had this attribute, it was rare. Most people who had it were bosses of families. It just reminded him of that one Varia member, leader of the Lotus group, Lou. Lou had Sky flames, yet he appeared to not be a boss of any important family but served the Izumi family. "But I'm not playing with you anymore. I can't leave such an important prey like the guardian of the Rain out there waiting… any longer."

**||| ### |||**

"Huh!" Gokudera was utterly shocked at how this was happening.

"Gokudera! What are you doing here," asked Yamamoto, surprised he saw him.

"Ah!" Haru smiled, sitting on the ground with Lambo and I-pin beside her. "Gokudera, we were looking for you!"

"…What's going on here…?" Gokudera paled at this. "You've got to be joking… of all the times this had to happen… what awful timing…"

Nosaru frowned a little. "The swordsman looks different…?" Obviously he had no idea that Yamamoto switched places with his younger self.

"Listen carefully! You got to get out of her, fast," exclaimed Gokudera. He didn't have the time to explain, he needed them to run as fast as possible. He got a 'huh' and blank stares from the three, but the most that pissed him off was Haru. "Don't just 'hahi,' stupid woman! It's the only way!"

"What did you mean by 'stupid'!?"

"Whatever just run! Or else…"

Nosaru lit his scythe once more. "I won't let you escape!" He tossed a blast of flames towards the group. It hit dead on, debris of the bat and bag was seen. However, Nosaru didn't notice someone darting in from the sidelines before the attack connected.

**||| ### |||**

"Stay back," ordered Tsuna.

"Okay." Kyoko moved to a safe distance as much as she could and watched the battle.

Tsuna rocketed upward, Tazaru sending a wave of storm flames in a horizontal attack. It hit, however Tsuna had already risen his hands up in the Zero-point breakthrough revised stance to absorb the flames. The flames became stronger, and he became faster as he blitz past Tazaru.

"He got faster!? What's going on!?"

Tsuna reappeared behind Tazaru, and the Black Spell started to swing his weapon wildly to hit Tsuna. Tsuna kept dodging them, having a fast speed than this assailant who was also in the air with him.

"This guy is like a fly!" Tazaru lit one of the rings on his fingers and slammed it into a ring box weapon on his side. "Eat this." Tsuna was too close to his back, and spikes shout out of Tazaru's back and pierced Tsuna's shoulder. He wasn't expecting that.

"Tsu-Tsuna!" Kyoko watched in horror.

**||| ### |||**

Gokudera groggily got up, I-pin safely in his arm and then he looked back as he heard moaning. Yamamoto managed to get both Lambo and Haru. "That baseball moron… he saved them without even knowing the situation…" Gokudera gave a small smile. "Heh. You're not bad…"

"Yeah! I got rid of the sword guy!" Nosaru seemed beyond happy with himself.

"Jerk wad," yelled Gokudera as he lit his cigarette and got out his bombs.

"What's that, dynamite!? You can't beat me with that!" Nosaru knew ordinary weapons did nothing against box weapons.

Gokudera had to admit that he wasn't an ordinary person he could beat with bombs. Then he looked down at the Vongola ring on his finger, recalling what Future Yamamoto told him. Imagining his determination as a flame, and the only key to opening up that box he got from his future self.

"Heh, you didn't have to tell me…" Gokudera smirked. "I've always been… determined!" He gazed directly over at Nosaru. This was it! He had to imagine a flame; he concentrated as hard as he could while looking at his ring.

"_Gokudera," Future Yamamoto said as he led him to his room the other night. "Aiko teases, but she believes in you. She knows you've got the hidden potential, even now." He smiled at him. "She'd always be nearby for you because that's how she is." He looked at Gokudera. "Sooner or later, you'll understand why she's like that. She's watching you, like a shadow, and will always be." _

"Enough already! Die!" Nosaru raised his scythe above his head to prepare another attack.

_Into a flame!_ Just then, Gokudera's ring burst into storm flames at his will

**||| ### |||**

Smoke was coming out of the building that Tsuna, Kyoko and Tazaru was at. Due to his injury, Tsuna fell downward and hit the ground.

"Ah!" Kyoko stared to get up to go to Tsuna's side.

"Come to think of it, the tenth Vongola boss also used gloves that were lit with flames." Tazaru recalled that bit of information. "And that failed Izumi boss too, she used them before her demise." He gripped his weapon. "Well, no matter, since you're going to die now!"

"Tsuna," yelled Kyoko as she ran to him.

"Stay back!" Tsuna's words halted Kyoko. "It'll be fine…" Tsuna got up from the ground, the blood from his wounds dripping onto the concrete under him as he was on his hands and knees. "I will… protect you." Tsuna sat up right, his left hand on the ground while in a kneeling position. "Even if it means… I have to trade my life for yours." That's when Tsuna's sky ring that was dangling from the chain around his neck burst with sky flames.

However, it wasn't the only thing that burst with sky flames. He wore the Lotus pin, the one Maemi gave him in Maeko's stead. The small Lotus pin glowed just at the same time as the ring, and it became lit with sky flames as well.

The Vongola rings have finally awakened!

* * *

**Dramatic cut off! I'll be posting the rest soon. ^.^ Need to keep these somewhat short and sweet, so I don't drag on how long it's been since I post in between chapters. Plus, shorter chapters mean less likelihood of me dreading my longer chapters. Chapter 9 will be coming soon! And before you all start yelling about Regina, please be aware that it will be revealed unless people can conclude why she's Lussuria's darling. I had already planned on her, and I know her 'secret' just wait until I reveal it, pretty please? Until then, Ciao~ **


	9. Chapter 9-FT

**Welcome to Chapter 9 of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**, a Hibari X Oc pairing. I'm the darling author of this fan fic, and I'll pick up where I left of in chapter eight. Now let's get this party started!**

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Tsuna stood back up, his hands balled up while his flames were blazing wildly on his hands and head. Kyoko stood directly behind him, shocked and surprised. The Sky ring jingled about on Tusna's neck. "This feels like…"

Tazaru grit his teeth, realizing this was bad. The flames had changed not just in the form but it became highly pure flames of the sky. And from his experience, Tazaru knew this was very bad news.

"Getting scared," inquired Tsuna.

"Meh! You've got to be kidding! Women and lames go a long way if you use them right!" He moved his weapon behind him. "An irritating fly like you? All I need is bug spray!" Tazaru placed his ring into his box weapon, opening it up as three projectiles shot out towards Tsuna.

Tsuna dodged them, bursting the flames on his right hand to evade.

"There's no escape! The Dark Slicer will only go after you!" Tazaru knew it too. The three spinning blades went directly after Tsuna after only changing to retarget him. Tsuna used his flames, blasting them in front of him to deflect them as he moved backwards. It would have appeared he stopped them, except their flames relit and the Dark Slicer went back after him a little faster.

"It's reacting with the flame, huh." Tsuna seemed to be analyzing this battle calmly. He needed to, otherwise, his and Kyoko's life would be snuffed out. He had to analyze his enemy if it meant defeating their attacks.

"That's right!" Tazaru was sweating a little. "They'll only go after the giant flames your emitting. Every time it absorbs your flames, its speed will increase! Until finally…" The Dark Slicer was following Tsuna's movements as he flies. "It will achieve a speed 1.5x that speed of its target! It's impossible to doge!"

Tsuna flew directly downwards, aiming directly for Tazaru with his flight pattern.

"You're aiming for me!?" However, the slicers diverge around the Black spell. "Did you think I'd say that!" He grinned. "It will never hit the user. That's how it was made! Like I said, it's impossible to dodge!"

"Then, I'll stop trying to escape it." Tsuna stood still as the slicers headed towards him.

"What!?" At that very moment, Tsuna froze the slicers with his Zero-point breakthrough technique. "Im…Impossible! He actually froze The Dark Slicer!?"

"This is strange…" Tsuna was hanging off the side of the wall where he landed. "My body feels very light."

**||| ### |||**

Gokudera was staring down at his ring, surprised that there were flames. "This.. this is the dying will… flame!"

"Hnn…? That flame… it's the same as mine. It's storm." Nosaru was watching Gokudera carefully.

"Now I should be able to open this box thing." Gokudera was holding up the crusted box ring his future-self had in his briefcase. He was getting excited about opening this box. What could it contain if it really was a powerful weapon? To Gokudera, this was like opening Pandora's box. However, he took his chances despite his worries of a snake or even a demon appearing. Slamming his Vongola ring into the opening, he awaited as the box absorbed his flames.

A light spewed out, shooting open and surprised the two. An arm cannon with a skull décor attached to the mouth landed on Gokudera's right hand. "Heavy! What is this!? A skull!?" He looked at it a bit more, blushing at how cool it look.

"That guy!? He was holding a box all along!? I'll be in trouble if something weird comes out!" Nosaru began his descent downwards to attack Gokudera. "I'll strike first!"

Gokudera was shocked that he was coming. He looked down to see how he could use it. In Italian, it demanded that Gokudera feed it bullets. However, Gokudera doesn't use a gun so he didn't have any bullets on him.

"Die," exclaimed Nosaru.

"Can't I use this!?" Gokudera held the weapon up, and just at that point a blast of storm flames blasted Nosaru back. "It shot something…"

Nosaru was preparing for pain, but realized it didn't even hurt. "What the heck was that…? It didn't hurt. It didn't even tickle." Appearing to have no effect and Nosaru started laughing. "You almost had me going there…" That was until he started falling to the ground, slamming harshly on his back due to the fact that Gokudera's attack didn't damage.

It blew away the storm flames that was keeping Nosaru in the air.

"How dare you! You extinguish my flames, and still dare to show me that face!" Nosaru had gotten up and lit his scythe with storm flames, having it mix with the dark scythe's power. "Unforgivable!"

"What! Come on! Are you only good for one charge!?" Gokudera was shocked did manage that, but became panicked as Nosaru was going to be charging him.

The flames on Nosaru's shoes were revived ant he drew his scythe back as he charged towards Gokudera. "Time to die!"

Gokudera looked down at the weapon, wondering if it was just all for show. Until the words showed up _Bomba a diffusione_. A diffused bomb? Something click in Gokudera's mind. "I get it…. I didn't focus the energy just now… In that case." He lifted the gun up as Nosaru was about to deliver a downward slash at him. "If I clench the mouth tightly!" He clenched the bottom part of the weapon, clenching the mouth as he held it in front of him. "Eat this!" As Gokudera stood, a strong intense storm flame shot out and landed a direct hit on Nosaru.

**||| ### |||**

"Impossible!" Tazaru fell to the ground, looking over at Tsuna. "The.. the flames…" The flames on his feet had become frozen as well. "This… this is just like the renowned tenth boss of the Vongola!" He drew his weapon back to attack Tsuna. "who the hell are you!"

Tsuna used his hand to caught the staff portion of the scythe with his left hand, his grip tightening as he froze the weapon as well. This shocked Tazaru, his weapon froze and Kyoko watched in awe. "Here I come," said Tsuna, raising his right hand that was balled up. He delivered the final punch to Tazaru sending the Black Spell flying through the ceiling.

Tazaru landed outside, Gokudera spotting him and realized that Tsuna won. He grinned. "You did it, as expected! Boss!" He glanced over at hearing Yamamoto and the others waking up, and he rushed over to them. He was relived about them being alright, but he didn't understand why they came. "Heh… at least he has brought the Vongola Ring along…" He paused at hearing him say that. He pulled out the notes with the G-script on it. "Gather the guardians…" Then it dawned on him what it really meant.

"No worries," came a woman's voice. "Izumi is here for backup… after being distracted by stupid people…" Gokudera turned and spotted a woman. Or what he thought was a woman until he saw her chest. His jaw dropped. The dark skinned person wore feminine clothes and looked like a woman in the face. Except he was seeing something unwomanly between the legs.

_Is… that a bulge?_ Gokudera couldn't stop staring since the 'woman' was wearing a sarong and a bikini. Or what's left of the ripped outfit, everything was pretty much ruined expect for the bottom bikini part. Blonde hair was pulled into a pony tail and the 'woman' giggled.

"Regina here! Reporting for Duty~ Sorry for the delay." She glared over to the side. "Stupid punks of that blasted Black spell ruined my clothes. I had to go EXTREME on them." She giggled and looked over at the group. "Now, now—" She was going to say more, but two cloaked people came out the building Tsuna and Kyoko were in and one walked out of the building holding Tsuna draped over their arms. Kyoko stood beside the other person. "GUYS!" Regina ran right over to the first person and clung to them. "They ruined Luss's clothes he got me!"

Gokudera was shocked, as well as Yamamoto to see two Varia members assisting Tsuna and Kyoko. They'd recognize those clothes anywhere. "What the hell! Who are you!?" Gokudera lifted his weapon, ready to take them on. However, one that was holding Tsuna lifted his hand to halt him.

"That ain't any way to greet good friends, Gokudera." The one that Regina clung to laughed before pulling their hood down and smile. It was Ryuji Nishi, a member of the Izumi family.

"Ryuji! That means!" Gokudera glanced at the lapels of their coats, seeing the Lotus pin on them. "You're part of the Lotus group in Varia!?" He relaxed a little, dropping the weapon since he knew that if Ryuji was around, Maeko shouldn't be too far behind.

Ryuji chuckled. "Yep. Specific orders we got here." He smiled a little. "Boss-chan was worried, so we blitz over here as soon as possible. Kagami, my sister, is part of this unit too." He gave a serious look. "She's looking for Chrome. We told her to meet us at base when she does. The Thunder guardian and the Cloud guardian are with Boss-kun."

Yamamoto looked at the other Varia member. "And this guy is?"

The Varia member removed his hood, showing dark strands of hair framing his face. Two pale scars were around his left eye. He glanced at the two guardians of Tsuna sheepishly, and glanced down at Tsuna.

"He's not much a talker," said Regina. "Lou's been like that for a long time now. No need to pester him. He's the strong silent type." Regina winked and giggled. "I like that much." Lou seemed to give a dirty look over to Regina. "But it's true!"

"Sorry, we have to get back to base." Ryuji glanced at Regina. "Besides, this missy looks to mister. Don't you agree?"

"RYUJI!" Regina glared and Sun flames burst from her ring. "I'm going to fucking murder you, you half-ass limp dick mother fucker!" So much for proving she was a lady, as shown, Regina is 100% male. Reginald is Regina's real name, but she prefers to be called Regina so when Lussuria and she are out and about…

No one would suspect two men were kissing if one was dressed a woman.

Ryuji laughed, dodging the attacks and lead the way for the rest towards base. Lou carried Tsuna back to base as the rest followed behind the two who were play fighting. Ryuji managed to escape Regina long enough to corral those that just came from the past to the room where Reborn and Aiko was at.

Reborn greeted those that came from the past, telling them to listen carefully as he caught them all up to speed of the current events.

**||| ### |||**

Lou sat silently while the whole transaction happened. To Kyoko and Haru coming in, to even Tsuna getting upset. And hearing the complete letter that future Gokudera sent. Reborn spoke with Gokudera, Tsuna, and Yamamoto. Making it rather clear that defeating the man with the glasses would allow them to return to the past.

Lal Mirch identified this man: Irie Shouichi, one of the Millefiore's Squad Captains.

"Then we'll only punish him," said Reborn to Tsuna's outrage of the killing part.

"It's not that kind of problem!"

Yamamoto grabbed Tsuna, wrapping an arm around his neck and laughed. "Come on, Tsuna. Relax! You're not alone in this mess! We'll work together. It'll be fine!"

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna looked uneasy about telling Yamamoto that his father was dead in this time era.

"I think it's a good thing we've come here." Yamamoto gave a serious look. "We'll shape our own future with our own hands."

"You! Don't act so cool! That's my line!"

"I'm the right hand man after all."

"You wish! You're just roleplaying, aren't you," snapped Gokudera.

"You two…" Tsuna sighed

"Hey, you!" Gokudera glanced over at Lou who was still sitting there and listen in on the whole conversation. "What's your deal!? Why didn't you leave?"

Reborn glanced over at Lou, the two gazed at each other for a moment in silence. Reborn frowned, wondering something as he looked at this Varia member. "You can't be…" This wouldn't happen to be who he thought it was could it?

Lou smiled a little, lifting his hand and igniting sky flames on them.

"Sky flames!" Tsuna was shocked.

"Just like Maeko," exclaimed Yamamoto. He remembered her doing that multiple times.

"Ah, Lou," said Aiko as she came in. "Thought you'd be here. Keeping an eye on Tsuna until he recovers?" She smiled at him.

"Aiko…" Gokudera glanced at her. "Who is this guy?"

"Don't concern yourself with the details with Lou. Once Boss-kun is home, it'll be made apparent." She grinned at the teens. "Because Lou's sweetheart is with Boss-kun, he's waiting for them to return before speaking."

"Sweetheart!" Haru came in, tumbling because Lambo tripped her. Reborn stated he asked the two to take care of the meals and the two children. That was what the piece of paper he gave the two before and that upset Tsuna more at the moment in time.

"Ai-chan said she'll help too," said Kyoko. She glanced over at Lou. "But he's waiting for his sweetheart… That sounds sweet." She smiled at him. "You're waiting to speak to her first when you meet her, eh?"

Lou covered his mouth, a silent laugh from the Varia member and he nodded. Although, Aiko turn her head when Kyoko called his sweetheart a girl. She of all the people knew _very well_ who Lou's supposed sweetheart was. Oh, if only they knew…

Tsuna's jaw dropped, glancing over at the silent Varia member. Even though he saw this guy in the room, he wasn't scared of him. Not one bit, actually he felt calm and relieved. He didn't appear to have that intense killing aura like the other Varia members. Well, except that one time he met Caprice, who didn't emit that killing aura at all. Yet he had to wonder about something, so he asked. "Does he know where Maeko is?"

Lou glanced at Tsuna in puzzlement.

"Do you know where she is!? Is she okay!?" Gokudera looked at Lou directly.

Lou gestured to the Vongola Tenth to come closer, Tsuna did without trying to harm himself despite the small protest from Gokudera. Extending his hand up, Lou's index finger and middle finger touched Tsuna's forehead and he closed his eyes. The flames on his hands went from completely covering his hand, to the single point touching Tsuna's head.

"_Tsuna…."_ Tsuna blinked at hearing Maeko's voice. It was like it was resounding from his heart, like she was speaking from afar and he couldn't hear her clearly. Was she speaking through the bond he and she had thanks to the first bosses of their families? _"I will… always… watch… over… you…"_

"Watch over…?" Tears started to fall down Tsuna's cheeks. He didn't understand why he was crying. Was it relief? He knew Maeko was alive. He can sense she was, just like when Joben said she was dead at the end of the Vongola Sky Battle. He knew then she was alive, and he now knows she is alive here too. She was alive and sounded relieved. Relieved he was alright, so he should be relieved that she's okay too.

"Boss! You alright!?" Gokudera glared at Lou. "Bastard! What did you do to the Tenth!?"

"Hold it, Gokudera…" Reborn intervene this time as he watched Lou drop his hand. "Tsuna?"

"She's… always watching over me…" Tsuna blinked and laughed. "Maeko's Okay… I'm sure she'll be here." He swallowed, rubbing his eyes to wipe away the tears and looked at Lou. "Right?"

Lou smiled at him. He picked up a dry board, writing something on it. _'Boss-chan always watches Vongola even when she was in distress. The bond cannot be undone. She trusts in you. Believes in you.'_ He set the board down, the last words he wrote Tsuna saw only. _'She knows you can overcome this trial, Tsuna-kun.'_

"Maeko-san…" Gokudera gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. "Yeah." He looked up smiling. "Even if she's hurting, she wants to root us on! That's Maeko for ya!"

Yamamoto laughed. "Maeko's the best when it comes to things like moral boost!"

"Wait…" Tsuna blinked as he just wondered something. "Lou-san… are you Chinese?" Lou used Japanese honorifics and it seemed a little odd to Tsuna.

Lou tilted his head a little and smiled. Erasing what he wrote on the dry board, he wrote again once more. _'Lou is my alias name in Varia. I'm 100% Japanese. Couldn't tell, eh?'_

Tsuna and Gokudera's jaws both dropped at seeing this message. "Alias!?"

Aiko tilted her head and frowned. "Yeah, Lou has an alias to keep his identity unknown. If our enemy got wind of who he really was, he'd be on the top hit list." Aiko gave a serious look. "I rather they think of Lou as a member of Varia than who he really is. Too risky, Boss-kun agreed that the alias was needed to protect Lou's identity."

The teens glanced over at Lou who nonchalantly sat there and played with one of the rings on his fingers. Was Lou that important to Izumi and Vongola? Who in the world was this man sitting there?

"Wait!" Gokudera didn't seem satisfied with that answer. "If he's so important, why doesn't he reveal his true identity right now—" Gokudera was cut off as something shot pass him. He looked towards the wall behind him, sticking out of it was an oriental dagger covered in sky flames jutting out of the wall. He turned his head slowly back towards Lou, seeing the Varia member giving an irritated look to the teen while holding another dagger that wasn't covered in sky flames.

Guess he overstepped his bounds.

"Looks like Lou want you all to wait until he's ready to reveal." Reborn glances at Lou, gazing at this man intently. "Although I have questions I need to ask you, Lou. Let's talk." The baby hitman walked off, and paused at the door. Tsuna and Gokudera started sweating, doubting that Lou would get up and follow Reborn.

To their amazement, Lou slipped out of the chair fluidly and followed Reborn rather silently. The two left without much of a word, leaving to question if Reborn figured out who Lou really was.

Aiko glanced over at the two teens. "Alright, you boys need to rest a little. We'll get the meals ready and what not." Aiko smiled at the three boys, turning around and ushering Kyoko and Haru out so they could cook something. This should give the boys a little time to recuperate for one day.

**||| ### ||| The following day… ||| ### |||**

Both Tsuna and Gokudera got onto their hands and knees, kneeling before Lal Mirch when they met her in the command room. She was dressed and ready to leave, the two teens needed to do this.

"P-please! Please teach us how the fighting methods work in this era," Tsuna exclaimed, using his good arm that wasn't in a sling and bowing his head. Gokudera was doing the same thing.

"…" Lal Mirch was a bit taken back by this. "What is this?"

"W-we have to become stronger, so… but… that is… well, we don't know how to use the rings… and er…" Tsuna looked at Lal Mirch while Gokudera kept quiet while looking a little peeved.

"This is Reborn's idea, isn't it?" Lal Mirch closed her eyes.

"Bingo!" Reborn landed on Tsuna's head, slamming his head down due to the baby hitman. "In order to gather the guardians, they need to level up their fighting skills."

"Boss!"

"There's nobody more suitable than you," state Reborn.

"I refuse. Go ask Yamamoto or Aiko." Lal Mirch gave an irritated look. "Better yet, ask one of those Varia members. I'm certain they're knowledgeable in this time combat."

"Well, about that…" Reborn hopped on Tsuna's head, landing on Yamamoto's shoulder. "As you can see here, Yamamoto has returned to an ordinary baseball nut."

"Hello," said Yamamoto, smiling at Lal Mirch.

"Hey you, get on your knees too!"

"In any case, I have not the luxury of playing with you boys. Just carry on sitting there quietly and you may even live longer."

Lal Mirch left out of the room, ignoring the plight of Tsuna and headed down the hallway.

"A little cruel, eh, Lal Mirch?" A voice halted her, stilling her as she gazed down the hallway. One figure was visible while the other hid in the shadow. The Lotus Storm guardian.

"Aiko…" Aiko Kaneshiro stepped out with Lou beside her. "What brings you here? I'm busy." Lal Mirch turned once more.

"We have something to discuss, Lal Mirch." This time, the voice spoke again and still Lal Mirch. That wasn't Aiko's voice. "It concerns you and Vongola."

Lal Mirch swiftly turned around, spotting only Aiko while Lou was heading down the hallway. "Who was…?"

"Follow, Lal Mirch." Aiko smiled at her. "A debriefing is needed. We have something to say, so hear us out." Aiko followed Lou and Lal Mirch swallowed. The one speaking was definitely a woman, one she only heard once. She wasn't positive who it was, so she figured it may have belonged to an Izumi family member she never met. She followed them did until they lead her to the kitchen where the teens were at. Lou had managed to vanish before she arrived, Lal Mirch wondering how it was possible that man disappeared. He was the mystery she had to solve if she wanted to know why she heard a woman's voice she didn't recognize.

Giannini was there causing a fuss with his weapon offerings, and it appeared the girls had burnt some of the food.

"Aiko… I don't have time to—" She halted, turning around to find Aiko had vanished too. Those Izumi members were good about leaving without so much a sound let alone a trace. _Blasted Izumi family… they're like modern ninjas…_ Lal Mirch turned her attention to Reborn. "Do you really think these greenhorns can survive long here?"

"Makes one wonder, doesn't it?" Reborn was staring at the teens.

"Their prospects are zero. Even though they have the Vongola rings, in those hands, they will never win. I'm not that bored as to waste my time training a bunch of kids with no future prospects," commented Lal Mirch. She was going to find those Izumi members and give them a piece of her mind.

"Even if they've ignited the flames of the Vongola rings?" Reborn's question surprised Lal Mirch.

"What are you saying? That's not something you can lean in a day," stated Lal Mirch.

"But, the fact is, two of them ignited the flames, and Gokudera even opened the box. Well, if you'd seen it, you'd know they were serious."

"Stop talking nonsense! There's no way they could have done it," objected Lal Mirch.

"Long ago, that's what you said about _that_ guy just because he was younger than you," replied Reborn. "There's no way he could do it. His prospects were zero. Then, you left him. No?" This shocked Lal Mirch to hear him say that. "But, you must have seen it. Lal Mirch. When the time comes to protect those who are truly important to you, you will have a power that fears nothing, not even a curse."

Lal Mirch remembered her memories of that time, clutching the bandana Colonnello wore.

"You can't afford to lose that. You have to get it back," Reborn stated. "And before you get mad, Aiko and Lou are ensuring you don't turn your back on them. The Izumi has a strong, un-daunting and immeasurable bond of believing in Vongola. If Maeko believes Tsuna and these guys can do it, Izumi will follow her lead." Reborn smiled. "They trust their boss who believes in these kids. So, doesn't that say something?"

Lal Mirch clenched her fist at hearing this. She only known Maeko through others, and she knew Reborn was always beside the Izumi boss ever since Maeko was young. Yet, she had her doubts until he mentioned the rest of Izumi. Aiko was the one she constantly was in conversation with, and to see her believe in her boss and the Izumi boss's belief was outstanding.

"_Mae-chan believes in Tsuna, just like the first Izumi head believed in Vongola Primo."_

While the teens were relieved that the sprinklers didn't go off, and Giannini was fixing the faucet that fell, Lal Mirch slammed her head against the nearby wall. "Listen up!" This got their attention, earning a smile from Reborn. "The basic knowledge you need to know, and the fighting methods… I'll hammer them into your heads."

"Eh! Then… then…" Tsuna was surprised.

"For some reason, the enemy has sent much more powerful squads here than we anticipated. The Black Spell that you fought… If the whole squad was there, you would have been goners in an instant," stated Lal Mirch.

"Ah… That's right, what's that Black-something or another…?" Tsuna looked at Lal Mirch.

"The Millefiore family is a merger of two separate families! The up-and-coming Gesso Family, led by Byakuran and, a family with as much history as the Vongola and Izumi, the Gioglio Nero family led by Uni." Lal Mirch went into a more detail of the two. "Furthermore, those who came from the Gesso Family are now the White Spell, and they wear a white uniform. Those who come from the Gioglio Nero Family are now the Black Spell, and they wear a black uniform."

"So…" Tsuna said, thinking a bit. "So, that's how it is…"

"By the way, it's said that White spell specialize in precision and cunning battle tactics. Whereas Black Spell have more fighters and tend to engage in direct combat," stated Lal Mirch.

Gokudera was surprised. "What kind of wind has gotten into you? Suddenly you're telling us so much!"

"Gokudera-kun!"

"Oi-oi!"

"Don't worry! If you fall behind just once, I will gladly leave you behind." Lal Mirch scoffed. "I'm not the Izumi family, so I won't baby or pamper you in the slightest." She glanced at them, wondering if they even knew about this Lou character. "And for that… I will say this, beware of Lou. I've heard rumors of him talking to enemies once. Not much is known, but if he is a traitor..." She narrowed her eyes in a glare. "Kill him."

Outside the room, Lou was leaning against the wall and smiles. Being called a traitor by Lal Mirch didn't hurt too much, nor was the surprise responses of the teens. Now they suspected him, yet that wouldn't change a thing. He was doing his job when it came to intel, Izumi had spies within Millefiore and he was getting what they knew without raising suspicions. Tilting his head back, he sighed softly and gazed up at the ceiling. _How much longer do I have to wait…? Come home… please…_ He shook his head, scattering the painful thoughts and walked away to go outside. Outside where he'll wait patiently for the return of his beloved, the one he married.

The Vongola Guardian he married will be coming home soon.

Lal Mirch dug out a Ring box, and gave the task up to anyone who thought they could do it. The first lesson was to open the ring box that had cameo on it.

And so the lessons begin!

* * *

**Thanks for reading this ninth chapter, hopefully chapter ten will come out soon-ish. And I'm pretty certain those who read deeper into what I'm hinting at… you'll know exactly who Lou is. Anyways, I'll see you all in Chapter 10! Ciao~**


	10. Chapter 10-FT

**Welcome to the tenth Chapter of **_**Cute for my Cloud**_**, a Hibari X Oc fan fic. I'm certain some of you were dying for this, well… It's gonna happen. ^.^ Hibari shows up in this chapter! There will be **_**a minor skip in time**_** because I don't want to keep dragging on with the explanations. I'm sure most know what happens in the time gaps. Anyways, here's Chapter 10. Enjoy~**

* * *

**Chapter 10**

After getting an earful from the 'devil trainer' Lal Mirch, the next morning while Tsuna was looking for the bathroom he heard a commotion in the command room. Giannini was getting a transmission from Hibird. Giannini was trying his hardest to switch the fixed cameras to find the small yellow bird that was flying about. Everyone aside from the one Izumi member that wasn't present in base arrived due to the buzzer.

However, Giannini lost the signal; he did manage to get a last fixation which was near Namimori shrine.

"The shrine? What would Hibari be doing in such a place," asked Yamamoto.

Aiko frowned. "Could he still like hanging there ever since…" She fell silent, trying to not say too much about Hibari and Maeko.

"Ever since what?" Gokudera glanced at her.

"Ever since him and his sweetheart went there," Aiko stated bluntly. She was deep in thought about the matter, not recalling if there was something significant over there or maybe something vital. Hell, she knew only Maeko knew Hibari's tricks and hiding spots. Shame she wasn't around.

However, she didn't notice that the bit of information she said dropped a few jaws.

"Hibari-san has a sweetheart!?" Gokudera was highly surprised.

Aiko blinked. "Why are you surprise he has a sweetie? He had a group of fan girls for a while, wouldn't put it past them to attempt dating him. I mean whenever him and Maeko went on patrol, they had to shoot glares at the fan girls to not fight."

"Maeko had fan girls…?" Gokudera paled a little, recalling that Maeko had gone under the alias of a male name once. Minoru, the name of the weapon she wields, was the name she used at school a lot.

While the others were worried that Hibird could have fallen into enemies hands or the battery ran out, Gokudera pondered something on what he just said.

"It could also be a trap set by our enemies," stated Lal Mirch.

"A trap!" Tsuna glanced over at Lal Mirch.

Something connected in Gokudera's mind while they spoke. It dealt with Maeko's past alias. A male name alias… Lou stated his name was an alias while in Varia. Could Lou be…? "Aiko!" He looked at her. "Tell me straight or not!" He looked at her, surprising the others around him.

"Tell you straight what?" She looked puzzled.

"That Lou guy…" Gokudera swallowed at the thought, wondering if he was correct. "That's Maeko, isn't it?"

"Gokudera… Lou is a man," said Lal Mirch with confidence. "Why would a woman use a man's name?" She believed that Lou was a man despite never seeing him without his coat off.

Tsuna gasp. "Maeko's past alias!"

"Exactly, boss!" Gokudera was glad Tsuna caught on to that. "Maeko previous alias was Minoru, a male name!" He looked back at Aiko. "Is that Lou guy is Maeko in disguise!?"

Aiko blinked at what Gokudera said, sighing softly and scratching her chin. "I take back what I've said in the past, you're not a half-wit genius. However, what's your proof?" She looked at him sternly. "There has to be something other than the coincidence of a male alias."

Gokudera swallowed. "Both use sky flames, both have dressed in Varia uniforms." He was thinking of the other connections. "And most of all, he didn't harm the tenth. Wait…" Gokudera looked at Tsuna. "Boss! Did you get that weird vibe thingy like when you felt Maeko was alive around him? Like that guy was familiar!?"

Tsuna frowned at this bit of information. Lal Mirch sighs. "This is pointless, Lou is obviously a male."

"Hold on," Ryuji said, looking at Tsuna. "Tsuna, did you sense anything when Lou touched you?"

Tsuna looked at Ryuji and nodded. "I didn't consider him to be Maeko-san… because when I heard her voice it was far off." He placed his hand over his heart. "I wasn't scared of him, even when he was glaring… I felt rather calm, actually." He scratched the back of his head. "Like whenever Maeko-san would just stand quietly beside us while watching the ring matches. Or the few times she shot me a glare because I said something rather outrageous in class. It felt like Lou was just quietly giving his moral support… if that makes sense."

While they were discussing the fact that the strong blip on the radar could be a Black Spell call Gamma, Haru rushed in.

Kyoko was missing and left a note stating she was going home for a bit.

"Shit…" Aiko slipped on an earpiece and tuned it. "Lou, Lou!" She grits her teeth. "Damn it, why is he out of range! He should be in base!"

"Lou isn't here," stated Reborn.

"He isn't!" Aiko was surprised by this. "He always runs things like this by me if he isn't going to be in base and outside! He knows it's dangerous!"

Reborn grimaced. "He said he was heading out to wait." He looked at Aiko. "He's waiting for Hibari, or at least that's what he wrote he was going to do." Reborn was had a note left behind for him by Lou in case someone was wondering where he was. It stated rather simply that Lou was going to wait outside for Hibari's return since he had something to say to him.

"WWHAAAAAAAATTTTT!?" All the teens seemed to be unanimous about this shocking bit of information.

"Why is he waiting for Hibari!?" Gokudera looked over at Aiko who went silent.

"Ai-chan…" Haru looked at her. "Would Lou-san know where to find Kyoko-chan if she was in trouble?"

Aiko sighed. "Considering the location…wait…" She flinched. "Lou has a device that allows him to be notified if something like that did happen…" She glanced at Giannini, and he shriek in realizing he left entrance four unlock. "Tsuna, you decide." She looked at him. "We'll stay at base unless one of you hail us." She grimaced. "We can provide back-up… we can't let this base be taken so having several Lotus guardians here will ensure no one can take it over."

Tsuna nodded, taking cue from Reborn what he was suppose to do. Two teams were going to be heading out. Lal Mirch with Tsuna in Group A and Gokudera with Yamamoto in Group B. Group A was going to search for Kyoko. Group B was going to search for Hibird and Hibari.

Upon breaking, they both used two different exits to go towards their goals.

**||| ### ||| Sometime later, with Gokudera and Yamamoto. ||| ### ||**

Gokudera and Yamamoto were easily defeated by Gamma, and someone blasted a swirling about of cloud mist into the electricity. "I'll give you a hint about what you want to know," said a male voice. "They came over from the past." Standing in the smoke of the explosion was to pair of feet. "I'm not so stupid… as to be replaced of course."

"You seem to know a lot of things… but, if you want to join the fight, the rule is to give a name first." Gamma gazed towards the figure.

"There's no need for that." Hibird flew off of his owner's shoulder. "I'm in a very bad mood. I was suppose to meet someone dear here." Standing there a grown-up Hibari stood holding a cloud box weapon. "So, right here, right now, I'll bite you to death." The glint in his eye had gotten sharper over the years; it was none other than Hibari Kyoya the reliable Cloud Guardian of Vongola and the symbol of Order in Namimori over the years. He gazed coldly towards Gamma, wondering who in the world this man was to disturb the peace.

"Waiting for someone?" Gamma looked over, remembering from the posters of information about the various Guardians. Now he knew why he didn't give a name. "Got a hot date, Mr. Cloud Guardian… Hibari Kyoya?"

"So what if I am?"

"Although, Mr. Cloud Guardian… You've been giving our intelligence unit a lot of trouble. Are you an ally or enemy of Vongola…? What of Izumi? We just can't work out the motives for your actions." Gamma gave a small smile. "But, according to the most prevalent rumors, you have an infatuation with the seven wonders of our world or something. You appear to have been investigating the boxes."

"Maybe," replied Hibari. He didn't want to indulge the enemy of his ties with Izumi. If he mentioned Maeko's name, Hibari mood would have plummeted even further. It wasn't the first time where a Millefiore member mentioned Maeko's name and mentioned what transpired a few months earlier. That always tended to sour his mood so much he wanted nothing of whoever said it left.

Nothing left but their bitten corpse.

"Well, I'm the same, really. I wouldn't want to trust my life to things I know nothing about. So, do you want to know who, what for, and how they built this?" Gamma held up his box weapon.

"I don't want to answer that either. Like I said, I'm in a very bad mood."

Gamma smirked. "No wonder it's said that Hibari Kyoya is the Vongola's man. When it comes to your allies getting killed… you couldn't just stand and watch."

"Hardly," commented Hibari. "The thing which makes me angry is… when the discipline in Namimori has been defiled." The ring on his finger exhumed a large amount of Cloud flames.

"Eh discipline…? You said you were meeting someone dear here." Gamma smirked, he knew he heard Hibari correctly. That was something new since the intelligence unit never truly did find a solid source of who Kyoya and Maeko Izumi married. It was at the exact same time, the only thing they knew was that Maeko's husband was part of Vongola. Nothing else was known. "Meaning there's a Mrs. Kyoya running around, right? Or haven't married her yet?"

Hibari glared fiercer at Gamma. If Hibari had a mood meter, it would have dropped six notches at the mentioning of a 'Mrs. Kyoya' and it boiled his blood. Obviously very few outside of Vongola knew of the marriage he had. They were on a wild goose chase for a Saya Kyoya, the one he purposively married. Just like the wild goose chase they did trying to find a Kejiro Izumi who married Maeko.

No one outside of Vongola knew the real truth of who married who.

"Well, whatever. The more of the enemy's guardians I have on my kill list, the merrier." Gamma's ring was sparking lightning flames and he inserted it into his box weapon. "I'm a man… after all." Gamma's foxes were out and Hibari sent the same blast towards Gamma. Gamma could see that there was a hedgehog inside. "The hedgehog is cute, but what's with this power…? How are you able to control the box's movements with that third-rate ring?"

"My abilities when it comes to living things are not the same as yours," commented Hibari. His ring shattered due to unable to withstand the wave energy he was emitting. "So, we should… begin our attack too." Hibari slipped on another ring, having the flames burst out of the ring before putting it into another box weapon. This time, the weapon was something Hibari was overly familiar with.

Tonfas covered in cloud flames.

Gamma was a little nervous at this. Hibari was the first person he met who tosses rings as he uses them. The two clashed and Gamma realize that Hibari was no joke. The rumors of Hibari being the strongest of the guardians excited him.

**||| ### ||| A little away… ||| ### |||**

Lou glanced in the direction of the sound, standing up the Varia member sighed before something shot at him. He dodged swiftly to the left, skidding across the ground and his hand touched the ground as he gazed upwards to the sky.

A curly haired woman floating above him, storm flames were emitting from her boots as she wore a scantily clad Black Spell uniform. "Long time no see, Lou-baby." She blew a kiss, turning to the side to jiggle her breasts. "Did you miss me, my big boy~?" She gazed at him hoping he would be enticed by her voluptuous bounty of a body. Most men couldn't keep their eyes off her, let alone their hands. Just a few manage that, and she always wanted those men as her pets.

Lou blankly stared at her, turning around as he noticed that there was a large spike looking thing near the shrine. _Probably Hibari…_

A wave of storm flames hit the ground as Lou dodged yet again, causing an explosion that would have been heard from the shrine. "Stop ignoring me!" She held a two hand scythes. "I want you as a pet! I'll make you talk if it's the last thing!" She was turning red with anger. "You're my prize that I've set on ever since you got here! Next will be that stupid Hibari and then Xanxus!"

Lou snorted at hearing this. Lifting his right hand up, he motions her to come at him. This woman was Bellatrix of Black Spell under Gamma's control, and she came all the way from Italy to chase him down. Amusing, really it was. Lou will have a final dance with this Black Spell; the final dance of Lou of Varia.

**||| ### |||**

Tsuna heard that Gokudera and Yamamoto weren't in any danger, yet he met with Kusakabe Tetsuya. His hair had gotten a bit longer, but he still looked the same despite the years. Just then an explosion was heard, and both turned their heads in the direction.

"Wait… that wouldn't be Lou-san, would it?" Tsuna was the one who said this, surprising Hibari.

"Lou!" He looked at Tsuna and then to the forest. "Are you positive that Lou is outside?"

Lal Mirch nodded. "He left last night after I accuse him of being a traitor. He left Reborn a note saying he was going to wait outside for you, Hibari Kyoya, and say something to you."

Hibari slide a glare over to her. "You made a big mistake…" Hibari hurried over to the direction. "Tetsu, I'll leave them to you." He hurried over to where all the explosions were going on.

"Wait, Hibari-san!" Tsuna followed after him.

"Wait, we can't hide these here or enemy's radar will pick it up," Kusakabe said to Lal Mirch.

"It's fine, leave it to me." She took the two Vongola rings since she was going to pick up Kyoko. "What about those two?" She glanced towards where Hibari and Tsuna went. From what she knew, Hibari didn't like crowding and more than likely will attack Tsuna if he felt such. Then again, Hibari's reaction to Lou being attack was… interesting. Lal Mirch wasn't expecting it at all.

"I'm certain Kyo-san will be alright. Lou-san is capable, so I doubt Kyo-san will need to draw his weapon," commented Kusakabe.

"Eh, he can handle it," Maemi's voice was heard.

"Yeah… Hibari-san tends to do just fine," Isamu stated. Lal Mirch looked over to see the Cloud guardian and the thunder guardian of Maeko's. The only one left was the mist guardian who was looking for Chrome.

"Leave them to me," said Aiko. Kusakabe and Lal Mirch turned to see her standing there. "Tetsu, take these two into the base for us. I'll retrieve the bosses and Tsuna." She looked a Maemi. "You two head in and relax. Maemi, make sure to see Haru."

"Mn, will do." Maemi smiled, grabbing Isamu's arm and led him into the invisible wall for the base. They were followed by some blonde haired woman who was silent, yet she didn't look like Caprice.

"The bosses…?" Lal Mirch was confused.

"Yes, the bosses." Aiko smiled. "You'll see why once you come back with Kyoko-chan." Aiko drew out a Storm Ring box and hurried towards where Tsuna and Hibari went. She had a feeling she was going to have to shoot some pests out of the way. No one has ever gotten out of her line of sight when it came to her scope; not even Maeko.

**||| ### |||**

Tsuna and Hibari manage to get opening in the forest, smoke kicking up from the combatants being in the mist of battle. "Lou," called Hibari. "Lou!" He covered his eyes, trying to spot a figure in the smoke. He couldn't see anything, but he noticed some Storm flames and grimaced. She wouldn't be here, would she?

"OH! Hibari Kyoya!" Bellatrix squealed, flying higher to look at him. "You brought a cutie with you too~ Good thing I'm a cougar, I can show that boy a thing or two." She winked over at Tsuna.

Tsuna gawked at being winked at like that, chills running up his spine as he feared this woman would do some rather horrible things to him. He didn't want to know!

"Where is Lou?" Hibari glared at Bellatrix.

Bellatrix grinned, pointing down at the ground before landing. Well, she was heading towards someone before a blast of Storm flames hit the figure that was standing there. "What!?" She flew backwards, looking down in aghast. The collar she took precious time to put on Lou was on the ground, and Lou was back on his feet.

"Someone shot him!" Tsuna jaw dropped as Aiko stood beside him.

"Stop playing stupid twit." Aiko held her umbrella, smoke coming out the tip of it. Tsuna looked at the umbrella, noticing that there was a handle and what looked like a trigger too.

"Aiko-san… is that…?" Tsuna didn't dare ask.

"A gun in the form of an umbrella," answered Aiko. "It doesn't take normal bullets but my flames are enough ammo to send a precise bullet to my target. It shield and defend me from oncoming attacks while I blow pest asunder." Aiko glanced at Tsuna. "I have other weapons. I just like my sniper umbrella a bit too much…"

"My Louie!" Bellatrix landed on the ground before glaring over at Aiko. "You whore! I'll make you regret that!" She snapped her fingers, several men carrying scythes showed up wearing the same collar that Aiko shot off of Lou.

Tsuna glanced over at Hibari, seeing him getting irritated at just the sight of all those people and Tsuna glanced at Aiko in worry. He didn't want to get bitten to death. "Leave these pests to me," said Aiko. She returned her umbrella into the box, opening another and catches a sniper gun coated in Storm flames. "I'll snipe you flies out of the sky." She took out a pair of glasses, sliding them on and tapping the side before a display showed up. She raised her gun and smirk. "Come get me, you worthless Black Spells."

Bellatrix signaled them men to attack, all dive bombing towards the three while she herself walked over to where Lou laid. However, she stopped upon hearing loud explosions and looked.

Tsuna was watching the whole time while Aiko shot one after another, hitting with precision despite each Black Spell member being mobile and flying. Her glasses started to glow too, Storm flames jetting out of the side and it showed to Tsuna they weren't ordinary glasses. They were tactical glasses Aiko wore to predict and maneuver against her opponents that were air born.

Lou was still lying on the ground, motionless before Bellatrix got to him. Bellatrix grabbed him by the collar, looking at his face to see his eyes were still closed. "Oh Lou!" She hugged him tightly and proceeds to snuggle her face into his chest. "Now you're finally…." She frowned pulling back and groping his chest. "Mine…?"

Aiko started laughing at this, turning around and slamming her fist into a nearby tree. Hibari face palmed, looking away and trying to not laugh at the confusion Bellatrix was having. They knew Lou had some extra padding there. Well, considering who it really was they wouldn't blame her for being confused.

Bellatrix jumped back just as Lou opened his eyes. "Why is your chest…? It's not possible…!?" She gritted her teeth. Tsuna glanced between the three adults, perplexed about what was going on until Lou started to move.

"Lou-san!"

Lou stood up, cracking his neck and unzipped his jacket. Tossing it to the side, this caused Tsuna to gawk at what he was seeing. Standing with a black bikini top, fingerless gloves covering her hands, rings on her fingers, and several boxes lined on her belt. Wearing black slacks and boots to complete the ensemble; Lou was a woman, and one who looked eerily similar to someone Tsuna knew. "I'm home," said the woman, glancing over at Tsuna and giggles. "Missed me, Tsuna? Hibari, you best brought those souvenirs or I'm going be mad at you."

Bellatrix stood there in shock at what she was seeing. Lou wasn't a man but a woman.

"No way…" Tsuna smiled, truly relieved to finally see her. "Maeko-san, you're back!"

Hibari chuckled. "Guess that boot camp Varia style was good for you after all."

"Duh~" Aiko grinned. "Who better to get Mae-chan out of the funk other than Xanxus? I mean, come on, that guy is brutal and gives no sympathies." Aiko glanced at her best friend. "Welcome home!"

"My Louie!" Bellatrix shouted, igniting her scythes once more. "I'll kill you! You…!" She glared at Maeko.

"Maeko Izumi, head and boss of the Izumi family." Maeko held up her right hand, the ring on her finger that had an Lotus inside the ring's crystal lit up with sky flames. She opened up a Rain ring box, a sword coming out and it became coated in sky flames. She stood with her feet apart, her sword tip pointed downwards as she held the hilt over her head. "Prepare to be obliterated, Ms. Bellatrix. The Lotus shall burn the truth into you!"

Maeko makes a return and her first fight is with Bellatrix of Black Spell!

Bellatrix charged Maeko, slicing down at her as if she was going to hit. To no avail, and Bellatrix stood fixated in the spot while Maeko stood behind her with her sword resting on her shoulder. "Child's play," said Maeko calmly. At first, Tsuna thought it was one slash until he saw Bellatrix clothes become nearly shredded to pieces.

"_Thousand Cherry Blossoms_," said Hibari. Tsuna glanced at him. "Didn't think she'd use that so quick..." He smiled over at Maeko. "Looks like your speed increased there."

Maeko chuckled as she returned the sword into the box and picked up her coat. "Just a bit, my speed was actually one of my benefits given how tiny I am."

Hibari went to her side, not going to make a comment while they were outside. "Don't scare me like that, or I'll bite you to death."

"Oh?" She glared at Hibari. "Mr. Doesn't-call-to-tell-me-he's-coming-home doesn't have a right to bite me at all, I think." A hand went to her right hip as she looked at him, Hibari's gaze following the hip and the pants she wore with it. His gaze traveled right back up to her exposed abdomen, noting the few scars and then finally back to her face.

"I was a little busy, I'm sorry." He looked at her. "I'll make it up to you."

Tsuna stood there in confusion. He heard what Maeko said about Hibari not telling her when he was coming home. Were they hinting the two that were together…?

"No way!" Tsuna jaw dropped in realization of just who the two were with.

"Tsuna-kun?" Aiko glanced over at him.

"The sweethearts are… no way…" He paled as if he didn't realize it himself. He just, not a few days ago in his time, thought the two were in no ways a couple.

"Hm?" Hibari glanced over at Tsuna in puzzlement before Maeko laughed.

"Come on, let's go." She grabbed Hibari's arm. "I'm certain Tsuna can tell us once we're in base." Hibari went with her willingly back towards the shrine and into the base. The first thing Tsuna did once inside was bow and congratulates the two on their marriage.

To think his suspicions in the past weren't too of the mark…

||| ### |||

Tsuna had gone to check on Gokudera after checking on Yamamoto. Hibari happened to drop by, before Bianchi and Fuuta arrived with information. However, due to the crowding caused Hibari to bite Tsuna and return to his side of the base. Leaving Kusakabe to the intelligence debriefing in his stead and returned to his side of the base to his own room. Hibari opened up the door to his room. Now he was in a bad mood, and seeing Maeko lounging around on the floor still in her Varia outfit made him stare a moment. "Still wearing that?" He smiled at her while walking in. He made certain to lock the door so no one dared bother them.

Maeko glanced over at him and chuckles. "I'll wear a kimono tomorrow, promise." She sat up as he came to sit beside her. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she straddled his hips and gazed into his eyes. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, Mae." He leaned in close and nuzzled his face against hers. How many months was it since he last saw her? He had been so busy with work, he almost neglected her. Yet he knew she was in Varia for an intensive boot camp ever since Minoru was destroyed. He had a feeling that Regina was right about that one thing. Only Xanxus would have been able to snap her out of it with a Varia-style boot camp to get her back into the fight. "Surprised you're not in the debriefing, skipping out?"

"Aiko will inform me of any changes. Besides, I want more alone time with you."

"Naughty girl."

Maeko smiles. "Only for you."

Hibari smiled at this. He missed their banters and her teasing. "I'll be busy tomorrow, so tonight shall we indulge?" He really wanted just an intimate night, but he also didn't want to wear himself out too much before tomorrow. He had to evaluate the Lotus Guardians again to ensure they were at the top of their games, such he made a habit since marrying Maeko. They can romance another time. He could tell from that combat earlier she was swifter, or just quicker than her opponent. He heard that Bellatrix wasn't the quickest to swing her weapon.

Maeko sighed, moving so she sat directly in his lap with her back against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her trim waist. "After tomorrow, when you're not busy since I have a feeling it'll be a while before I switch." Hibari leaned close, biting her shoulder and caused her to moan. "Hibari, I said tomorrow."

He nibbled his way from her shoulder up to the sensitive part of her left ear. He bit down, earning himself another moan and feeling her shudder in his arms. "I'm giving love bites, like you did last time."

"I did not!"

"You gave me twelve, love," he reminded. He counted how many hickeys she put on him the last time the two were together. "Or did you forget that?"

"It's bug repellent," she scoffed. "Do you know how irritating it is to hear over and over again women wanting you despite you being my husband? I mean, seriously. There is only one Mrs. Kyoya."

He smirked. "And it's you, Mae." His hand slide down her abdomen, across the pale scars and he began playing the whip to remove the belt so he could play inside her pants. He continued to nibble on her shoulder and her neck as he pulled her shoulder length hair to the side so he could play all he wanted.

"Hibari…" Maeko bit her bottom lip to not be so loud, squirming in his lap.

Hibari smirked at her moving and trying to not moan. "Adorable," he murmured. "You keep this up, and we'll be tumbling in the bed sheets in no time." He blinked when she moved out of his lap, frowning at her doing so. True in the past he wouldn't have let her escape, but he knew better than to push her sometimes. If she wanted up, he lets her up without questioning her. That was until she pounced him. "Ofmph!" She managed to knock him down onto the floor, his gaze on the ceiling before seeing Maeko's face blocked it out.

Her hair curtain their faces and he had to stop himself from having a smug look on his face. Her elbow rested beside his head, her head dipped low as she kissed him. He parted his lips, kissing her deeper as their tongues wage in a war like dance of dominance. He buried his left hand into her hair. He rolled her underneath him, kissing her and only pulling back to pant to get some air before returning to kissing her.

The passion was mutual; months spent apart and possibly even being apart at a moment's notice was driving them. Any second, either Maeko or Hibari could be switched with their past self.

Except when a certain Box weapon decides his masters need to give him attention. Just as Hibari lifted his head so the two could catch their breath, a black furry head pushed between the two and Hibari snarl. "Lou, why are you out of your box," he snapped. Maeko covered her mouth to stop herself from laughing as Hibari glared at the Cloud Box animal. He was about to take off Maeko's top and this damn animal came in at the wrong time. Like usual.

The Black Panther lay over Maeko's abdomen, looking like it wasn't going to move and gave a yawn. Flames were coming from the joins of the limbs and on the tips of it's ears looked purple despite the fact the owner was a Sky flame user. It looked at Hibari bored while the carnivore was seething on the inside. This blasted cat, the one _he_ gave to Maeko as a present, was persistent on interrupting the couple. Every damn time and always on the dot when this blasted box animal decides to come out of it's box to be Hibari's nemesis. Right when the two were about to be intimate; fortunately, it never happens if they start in the shower.

"Lou…" Hibari tried to speak calmly, hoping to settle this without getting into a brawl. "Can you move? I have to have time with my wife before I get to busy with training tomorrow." He smiled at the panther that was named Lou before Maeko took the alias.

Lou blinked at him, staring him down before swatting at Hibari's nose. Hibari dodged it, knowing well enough that swipe was meant to hurt him. It became a habit between the two to fight despite the fact that Lou was just fighting with Hibari to get some attention from his former master.

"You…."

Hibari patience had run out, and Maeko was trying so hard to not burst out laughing. The only time her husband ever got flustered was around this box animal. Lou always got Hibari flustered to the point the two fought. Constantly, and to the point where she was trying so hard to not laugh. Not only that, but it was just too funny that the one interrupting them was like their child. Sort of, in a way if one looked at a box weapon considering it's master parents.

Hibari got up, pulling his tonfas out and glaring at the feline. "I'm going to bite you to death." He gave a menacing glare to Lou. "You still need to learn who the alpha in this family is. Prepare for punishment for interrupting me and my wife."

Lou started snarling at him and stood up.

"Boys…" Maeko gently pushed Lou off her and stood up. She walked over to her husband and kissed his lips softly. "Darling, come on now. Do you really want to be fighting with Lou now? You two will go at it for days, besides he's just showing how he misses you." She smiled at him and got the box weapon and looked at Lou. "Sorry, tonight you can't be bickering with the hubby. Play nice, please?" Holding the box open, Lou was transported back into the box and Maeko put it back onto her belt.

Hibari's mouth twitched at her doing that. She did have a point. He'd fight that blasted box weapon with his normal tonfas for days on end just to get the point across that Maeko was _his_ wife. He wrapped an arm around Maeko's waist and grumbled. "Stupid feline…"

"Feline was gotten by you, maybe you're ego transfer?" Maeko wrapped her arms around him and giggles as she gave him a hug.

Hibari scoffed at this. "Doubtfully." He held her tighter, feeling her body against his and sighs softly. "Maybe a quiet night together, like old times, would be better." He gave a smug look at her. "After all, once I'm done evaluating, I'm spending all night and morning with you."

"Pervert, all you think about is tumbling in the bed with me." She lightly hits his chest and laughs.

"Can't help it, Mae…" He nuzzled his nose against her hair, down to the crook of her neck. "Aside from work, all I ever think about is you naked in bed with me."

Maeko chuckled at his words. "And maybe biting idiots who disturb the peace in Namimori?"

"That too."

"And the bastard who hurt me," she added.

"He's dead… If I get a chance to be alone with the one destroyed Minoru… He's dead." Hibari pulled back to give an icy glare. "No one hurts you like that." He gave a warm smile. "Only I'm allowed to tease you to the point you're crying."

"Because you're my teasing, mean carnivore," Maeko said. "And I love you for that, all of you." She leaned in close and gave him a kiss. A slow and thorough kiss that Hibari had no qualms with; until Lou got back out of his box.

Hibari glared at the pesky box animal, letting go of Maeko so he could bite Lou to death for interrupting yet again. "I think you need a time out mister…"

Maeko laughed at this, glancing at the two who seemed to be having a dispute. "Boys will be boys…" She walks back over to make sure that neither of them started a brawl in her and Hibari's room. Tonight, they'll spend a quiet eve where they just talk, cuddle, and try not to take a tumble in the bed sheets.

Just like when they were in high school together.

**||| ### ||| With the rest in the meeting |||**

The meeting was at it's end when Kyoko and Haru came in to see Bianchi and Fuuta. Along with them was Lambo and I-pin. Tsuna knew having the guardians of Maeko was good there, because he needed to ask each of them about the current situation. Regina was sitting between Ryuji and Maemi. Aiko was sitting beside Kasuakbe and Isamu was leaning against a nearby wall, silent. Also in the meeting, Tsuna told Lal Mirch that Lou was actually Maeko and she was the wife of Hibari. Obviously she wasn't told about this, shocked to hear that the one she accused of being a traitor was Maeko Izumi.

Now Hibari's words to her made sense…

"Aiko-san, who are you dating?" He looked at her. "Reborn said you were with someone, and I know Maeko is married to Hibari-san." He was clam now after his earlier freak out of seeing Hibari being like that. While they were walking, Hibari and Maeko flirted a little bit. Then again, he figured Hibari was perfectly fine flirting in front of allies and not the enemy.

Aiko chuckled, not surprised that he'd say that. She sticks her tongue out a little. "Those two were meant to be from the get go. They have similar likes and dislikes, and the two hit it off so well in middle school." She gave a sadden smile, knowing that she was going to talk a bit of something painful for her. "As for me… well, my boyfriend just landed himself in the medical bay."

"Just landed in the medical bay?" Haru gave a confused look.

"She means Gokudera," corrected Maemi. "She's been dating him for… two years now?"

"Four, actually. I managed to confess after you and Maeko teased me for like six hours." Aiko gave a peeved stare. "You sisters are ruthless when it comes to teasing. Hell, Maemi, you don't even have a crush on anyone right now."

"None that I'd let on." She giggled and looks at the two teens. "There wasn't enough time for the two to actually start dating in the past. But Bianchi agreed that Aiko was perfect."

"That meanie!?" Haru looked over at Aiko, and Kyoko did too. "Haru wants to know more!"

Yet Kyoko and Tsuna noticed how sad Aiko looked. To think her friend wasn't happy and she could guess. If the adult Gokudera was her boyfriend, then that meant the younger one wasn't aware that his girlfriend was worrying for him. "Ai-chan, it hurts seeing Gokudera-kun hurt like that… and you can't just outwardly voice your concern because he doesn't know you're his girlfriend in this time." Kyoko was the one to voice this, looking at Aiko.

Aiko glanced at Kyoko in surprise. Everyone was listening in, even Kusakabe who was still waiting for the information Aiko manage to get. Aiko glanced downwards. "Yeah… anyone of us who is dating any one of the Vongola Guardians has that chance. I'm certain Gokudera would be shocked given how we were in the past." She closed her eyes. "But… He has to understand, that the past four years… He was a wonderful and understanding boyfriend." Aiko smiled and looked at Haru and Kyoko. "To me, even if he's from the past, I know Gokudera just as well as his sister, Bianchi."

"I'm expecting a wedding soon," said Bianchi, scaring Aiko and she jumped. She was not expecting Bianchi to say that.

"Bianchi!" She turned red. "We still have time! No pressure, geeze!"

"Um… Aiko-san." Tsuna scratched his cheek. "I have a couple of questions, concerning Maeko-san."

Aiko glanced at Tsuna. "What is it…?" She was just glad he didn't bother to ask why she was dating Gokudera then again he probably had suspicions as to why the two were dating.

"If Minoru is destroyed in this time era… does that mean Maeko from ten years past will come here? And why was she in Varia?" Tsuna looked at Aiko. "I know it was destroyed here, yet in the past it's not! Meaning, Maeko from that time…!"

Aiko sighed softly. "Yes, there is a high probability that Maeko from the past will come. As to why she was with Varia, it was the boot camp we sent her to after Minoru was destroyed."

Regina chuckled. "I suggested it! Because Maeko was all lifeless, I recalled Xanxus didn't know what happened at the time so I went with her to explain what happened." Regina voice dropped to her actual tone, a deeper voice by the man. "Xanxus had to beat her back into the fighting spirit. It's a cruel way, but it was the only thing I could think of. She either fought back or died. Obviously, our boss is here thanks to her will to live. She has too much at stake if she just willy-nilly died on us."

Aiko looked at Tsuna. "She's the only one who can assist you, realistically, as the Izumi head. Minoru can be reinforced here and she'll have to be trained just like everyone else." She placed her hand on her hip. "Except this time, she has guardians and a nuisance."

Tsuna looked at her puzzled. "Nuisance…?"

Reborn was the one to pipe up. "Ah, you mean Caprice's student? The one following Hibari around in this time era?"

"Eh!?" Tsuna was surprised, recalling the name vaguely since the blonde haired woman was with Xanxus at the time.

Aiko nodded. "Her name is Griselda, cloud flames affinitive." She gave a stern stare. "And also a woman who doesn't believe that Maeko deserves being the boss of Izumi, let alone married to Hibari." She glances down. "She believed that Maeko is weak given what happen a few months prior, but Hibari shot it down instantly. Griselda believes that Maeko is weak, and doesn't understand the huge impact the destruction of Minoru was to her."

"Hibari-san… is part of Izumi?"

Maemi glanced at Tsuna. "He's my brother-in-law. Marrying an Izumi head normally results in boss-like status. But he didn't marry her for status. He married my sister because he loves her." Maemi smiled.

"Sister…?" Tsuna blinked, recalling that in the past Maemi was going to refer to Maeko as her sister despite them being cousins. Aiko even referred to them as sisters. "Ah… so you did go with calling her sister."

Maemi smiled at him saying that. "Yes. I don't regret it. But…" She gave a frown. "We just found out something… disturbing."

Reborn glanced at her. "What is it, Maemi?"

"Joben is still alive." Aiko looked directly at Tsuna. "And he joined White Spell, he's part of Millefiore now along with his lackeys. And he'll do anything to get his revenge on Vongola and Izumi."

Tsuna blinked at this bit of information, shocked at this new brand of information. Joben had returned and was part of Millefiore, their enemy. "That means… past Maeko is going to have to fight him again!"

"Correct," said Aiko. "Except for one thing that Joben will not be expecting at all." She smirks. "She'll have Minoru and the secret technique down. The one used to enhance her powers, Hibari knows how to do it too."

"Eh! Hibari-san can touch the sword!" Tsuna only heard, from what Reborn told him, that very few could touch the sword without getting burned by it. The sword burned people with sky flames, forcing them to drop the blade since it wasn't a rightful master or someone who had permission to touch it.

"Kyo-san has been able to touch it since he first met Maeko-san," stated Kusakabe. "He's been able to hold it and use it too. Minoru recognizes him as the husband of the head of the Izumi family."

Tsuna's jaw dropped hearing this.

"The only records we have of a husband of a female head doing that was, ironically, the ninth. Our grandmother, Noriko Izumi's husband was able to wield Minoru from the start too." Maemi smiled warmly, recalling her grandmother very well despite how young she was. "Grandpa I don't remember, he died before both sis and I were born. He died for grandmother Noriko, I heard. He protected her with his very life from some crazed Mafia guy who attempted to kill her while she was pregnant with Uncle Sakuya."

"Wow…" Tsuna was amazed at hearing this.

"Very few could use it. Even Aunty Yumiko managed to do it only because of possession," continued Maemi.

Tsuna blinked at hearing this. "Wait, Minoru can possess people! Aren't ghost suppose to do that only!?"

Maemi blinked at how surprised Tsuna wasn't aware of this. She forgot this wasn't his future self who knew about this. "Actually it is possible. Minoru is named after the first Izumi head, Minoru Izumi. His soul lies inside the blade as well as each true Izumi head afterwards." She looked at Tsuna. "He placed it in there after the fight with Ricardo, Second Vongola Boss, in which Maemi Izumi, his sister and the next head of the family, witness this transaction." She looked at everyone who was present. "Shattering a soul isn't normal. Particularly one bound in a sword. The way Minoru was destroyed proved this Byakuran wasn't just trying to destroy a blade." She gave a serious look. "His objective was destroying the souls inhabiting it."

Tsuna swallowed at hearing this. "Does that mean…?" He was scared to ask if this guy could destroy souls, that would mean the possibility of past Maeko's sword getting shattered too.

"Don't sweat it for now," said Reborn. He had a small frown on his face. "When Maeko comes here, everything should be ready for improving Minoru for combat. Not only that, but she'll have six guardians to guide her in her training. She should be up to par with you by the time we're ready to strike."

Aiko nodded. "I agree. Don't sweat about her coming here until she does, that's when you should start worrying. Not now when the Mae-chan from this timeline is still here. As you saw, she's stronger than she was before." She smiles proudly at her best friend's accomplishments. "Strong enough to be on par with her husband, which is no small feat, and still manages to lead the Izumi family."

Tsuna swallowed and nodded in understanding. He shouldn't worry about Maeko until her past self comes here to the future. Until then, all he can do is wait and train.

* * *

**Thank you for reading! No worries, I'll have a longer chapter depicting the thirteen days afterwards. Got to have the loving couple bonding after all, can't leave you all hanging due to me posting chapters wetting the appetites of when the couple should appear. I'll get to work on Chapter 11 for **_**Cute for my Cloud**_** as soon as possible once I take a minor break so I'm not burned out and start to hate writing chapters. Until next time, Ciao~**


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